Weekly COVID cases up 19% in Knox County after 5-week drop
GALESBURG — After weeks of decline, there was a slight uptick in new COVID-19 cases over the week in Knox County.
The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 137 new cases of the virus in Knox County over the last week, bringing the total to 7,573.
That’s up from 115 new cases the previous week and five consecutive weeks of declining cases.
More: COVID vaccinations for kids making way to Knox County
While cases went up in the last week, other metrics measuring the spread of the virus are stabilizing.
For the week ending Oct. 30, ICU availability met the state’s benchmark of at least 20% of beds available for the first time since August.
ICU availability was 20.3% for that week, the most recent data available.
Knox County is also off the state’s warning list for increased risk of the virus for the first time since office, meeting all benchmarks except for the transmission rate, which remains high.
The state’s target for the number of new cases per 100,000 residents is less than 50; Knox County’s was 239 for that week.
A total of 7,573 Knox County residents have now tested positive for the virus.
More: Cottage Hospital, Galesburg, cuts 30 jobs due to labor market dynamics
One additional COVID-19 death was reported in Knox County in the last week, bringing the total to 172.
As of Friday, 52.04% of Knox County residents are fully vaccinated, with 55,397 total doses of the vaccine administered to date.
Statewide, IDPH reported 17,462 new cases and 183 additional deaths in the last week.
This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: ICU available no longer at warning levels in Knox County; another COVID death reported
