Health department reports COVID-19 death of unvaccinated Sangamon County man

Dean Olsen, State Journal-Register
·2 min read
Gov. JB Pritzker, who signed a bill creating judicial subcircuits in several counties, including Sangamon County, on Jan. 7. He's pictured here in an Oct. 27 file photo during a visit to Abundant Faith Christian Center in Springfield.
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The death of an unvaccinated man in his 80s became the most recently reported COVID-19-related fatality involving a Sangamon County resident.

The man tested positive for COVID-19 on Nov. 15 and died Monday, according to the Sangamon County Department of Public Health.

The county has recorded a total of 291 COVID-19 deaths among its residents and almost 27,000 COVID-19 cases overall.

The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 5,058 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday — part of a rising trend — and 19 new deaths.

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Since Nov. 19, IDPH has reported 21,034 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 statewide, including 87 additional deaths.

The state has documented a total of 1.78 million COVID-19 cases, including 26,313 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois, since the beginning of the pandemic in spring 2020.

As of Tuesday night, 1,982 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 384 patients were in intensive-care units, and 150 patients were on ventilators.

Nineteen Sangamon County residents with COVID-19 and one Menard County resident with COVID-19 remain hospitalized, officials said.

The preliminary seven-day statewide COVID-19 positivity rate for cases as a percent of total test from Nov. 17-23, 2021 is 3.3%. The preliminary seven-day statewide test positivity from Nov. 17-23, 2021 is 4.1%.

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Almost 64% of Illinoisans have received at least a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and 57.7% are fully vaccinated.

In Sangamon County, 62.7% of residents have received at least a first dose, and 57.8% are fully vaccinated, according to IDPH.

Contact Dean Olsen: dolsen@gannett.com; (217) 836-1068; twitter.com/DeanOlsenSJR.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Sangamon County COVID: Unvaccinated man in 80s dies