By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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SPRINGFIELD — Gov. JB Pritzker’s office confirmed Friday that the statewide indoor mask mandate will end Monday as expected.
Pritzker had announced on Feb. 9 that the mandate would end by that date so long as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continued their downward trend.
Since then, the number of people hospitalized in the state with COVID-19 has been cut in half and the number of available intensive care unit beds has increased 24%, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. The state’s weekly COVID-19 case rate also decreased by 70%, the governor’s office said.
“Throughout this pandemic, we’ve taken action to save lives and keep our economy open – and I’m proud that Illinoisans have done the hard work that has our made our state a leader in the Midwest,” Pritzker said Friday in a news release. “Today, our hospitals are much better positioned to handle emergencies and more than half of all eligible adults have been boosted; this is the progress we needed to make to remove our state indoor masking requirements. As individuals, I encourage everyone to make the best choices going forward to protect your health, along with that of your family and community – and most importantly to treat each other with kindness and compassion.”
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More than 8 million people in the state are fully vaccinated and an average of approximately 16,000 COVID-19 vaccine shots are given each day, including more than 4,600 first doses daily. Nearly 64% of the state’s population is fully vaccinated, according to IDPH. About 57% of Winnebago County residents have been fully vaccinated, according to the Winnebago County Health Department.
“We are now entering the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic and while our focus continues to be on preventing severe illness and ensuring our health care systems aren’t overwhelmed, we are also looking forward to how we will coexist with COVID-19,” IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said in a news release. “We each have a role to play in staying healthy and we have many tools that can help protect us from severe illness due to COVID-19. Our tools include readily available safe and effective vaccines, monoclonal antibody and oral antiviral treatments, at-home testing, as well as the personal health actions people can take such as avoiding crowds, hand washing, and continued mask wearing as may be recommended.”
Masks will still be required where federally mandated, such as on public transit, and in health care facilities, congregate settings, long-term care facilities and daycare settings. Businesses and local governments may choose to implement their own masking rules.
Pritzker, whose administration is appealing to the state Supreme Court a ruling that overturned his school mask mandate, urged for continued masking in schools.
The statewide mask mandate for indoor public places regardless of vaccination status was reinstated Aug. 30. It had been lifted for two months, but was put back in place after a late summer surge driven by the delta variant.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.