Although patients hospitalized with COVID-19 remained high at 5,238 occupied beds a daily total reached last year on only a handful of days it still meant 2,100 fewer patients hospitalized with the virus than when Illinois hit its record high on Jan. 12.
The state has averaged 107 deaths per day over the past week, a stretch that saw Cook County lose a total of 425 residents to the virus the worst week since mid-November 2020.