State goes over 50% vaccination level for adults over Memorial Day weekend

Jun. 2—The Memorial Day weekend proved to be a significant one for COVID-19 vaccinations in Illinois, as the state reported that more than 50% of all people aged 18 and older are fully vaccinated against the virus.

The Illinois Department of Public Health said that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data indicated that Illinois had hit the 50% threshold for full vaccination amongst adults, with 4,968,322 people 18 years old and over being fully inoculated. The data also said that 67% of all adults had received at least one dose of the vaccine.

The vaccination progress is helping to bring cases down to their lowest point since last summer. IDPH reported just 401 new cases on Tuesday, the lowest total since June 22, 2020. The case positivity rate also saw new lows, with the percentage dropping to 1.9% and the rate as a percentage of tests dropping to 1.6%. The state also reported eight new deaths, all in Cook County.

Case totals had declined all weekend, with 802 cases reported Saturday, 602 cases reported Sunday and 521 cases reported on Memorial Day itself. IDPH reported 85 new deaths over the weekend.

Sangamon County saw 27 new cases over the weekend into Tuesday, with 10 cases on Saturday, eight on Sunday, three on Monday and six on Tuesday. No new deaths were reported.

Menard County saw four new cases, with one case reported Saturday, two reported Sunday and one case reported Tuesday. No new deaths were reported.

However, daily vaccinations are seeing new lows, in part due to slow reporting over the holiday weekend, but also due to a shrinking pool of people willing to get the vaccine. IDPH reported just 17,077 new vaccinations Tuesday, the lowest number of daily jabs since Feb. 7. The seven-day average of vaccinations declined to 45,545, the lowest since Feb. 3.

Overall, the state has reported 11,308,983 vaccinations, with 5,278,187 people having been fully vaccinated, representing 41.43% of the population.

Sangamon County reported just 113 vaccinations Tuesday, with the seven-day average declining to just 414 vaccinations per day, the lowest since Jan. 7. Overall, the county has provided 176,716 vaccinations, with 85,283 people having been fully vaccinated, representing 43.66% of the population.

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