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The active COVID-19 caseload in Peoria County has tripled over the past three weeks, and the entire Tri-County has added more than 10,000 new cases during that span.
The region’s three public health departments on Monday reported a total of 2,586 new COVID-19 cases since Thursday, including 1,402 in Peoria County and 991 in Tazewell County. That brings the Tri-County’s total case count since the start of the pandemic to 71,205 — up from 61,075 on Dec. 13.
The pandemic also has resulted in 30 fatalities since Dec. 20, pushing the Tri-County’s death toll since March 2020 to 933.
Peoria County saw its active caseload jump by 457 patients in the past four days, with 2,787 people isolating at home and 96 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. That represents a sharp rise over the past two months: total active cases in Peoria County were at 190 on Nov. 1, and 893 on Dec. 13.
Tazewell County health officials could not provide hospitalization or home isolation figures, saying their contact tracers have been overwhelmed by the high volume.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), 87% percent of intensive care unit beds across Region 2 — which includes Peoria, Bloomington-Normal, and the Quad Cities — were in use at the end of the day on Sunday.
Monday’s updated IDPH vaccination figures show 55.1% of the Tri-County population is fully vaccinated, and 59.3% of residents have received at least one dose.
