IDPH notes that “day by day deaths reported on weekends and originally of the week could also be low as IDPH and native well being departments transfer away from reviewing and processing COVID-19 loss of life information over the weekend. These deaths might be captured in subsequent days.”

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There have been no less than 3,066,645 complete COVID circumstances, together with no less than 33,358 associated deaths within the state for the reason that pandemic started.

The seven-day statewide take a look at positivity charge is 1.7%, which is unchanged from yesterday.

Throughout the previous 24 hours, laboratories have reported testing 83,478 new specimens for a complete of 57,205,465 for the reason that pandemic started.

As of Tuesday evening, 470 sufferers in Illinois have been reported to be within the hospital with COVID-19. Of these, 64 sufferers have been within the ICU, and 27 sufferers with COVID-19 have been on ventilators.

A complete of 21,347,013 vaccine doses have been administered in Illinois as of Monday, and 64.33% of the state’s inhabitants is totally vaccinated. The seven-day rolling common of vaccines administered day by day is 7,028.

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Variant-targeted vaccines are the subsequent part in preventing COVID-19, and the College of Illinois – Chicago is amongst a number of locations nationwide participating in a brand new vaccine trial involving Moderna.

UIC has performed a significant position in COVID vaccine trials as dozens of volunteers participated in research for the unique Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. UIC is being tapped once more as one among 24 websites nationwide to guage Moderna boosters particular to numerous variants.

“We’re going to be testing a wide range of variant vaccines in opposition to beta, delta and omicron variants and numerous combos with the unique vaccine,” UIC Infectious Ailments Director Dr. Richard Novak stated.

The concept of the research is to find out the very best technique to guard folks in opposition to future variants.

“The variants will in all probability be associated to the latest variants which might be circulating,” Novak stated, “and so hopefully these variant vaccines will present higher immunity in opposition to the subsequent variants which might be coming.”

Whereas 600 folks might be enrolled nationwide, UIC is searching for 40 volunteers: half over 65 years outdated, and half who’ve already had COVID. All contributors will need to have already acquired the first COVID vaccination sequence and a booster.

“Some will get mixtures of the beta variant, some will get beta variant plus omicron some will get a combination of delta with Omicron,” Novak defined.

If variant vaccines show to supply extra safety than the unique vaccines, drug producers could regulate their prototypes yearly, just like how they replace the flu vaccine.

Nevertheless, consultants say predicting when new COVID variants will emerge and the way harmful they are going to be stays a problem. However docs say it helps that the extent of immunity is excessive due to vaccines and an infection.

“That immunity could play a task in deciding on that subsequent variant, as a result of variants solely emerge if they’ll evade an immune response,” Novak stated.

UIC is hoping to start enrolling volunteers for its trial earlier than the tip of the week. Within the meantime, the FDA is assembly subsequent week to debate the way forward for booster doses.