Chicago moves to medium-risk COVID-19; masks are again recommended indoors

CHICAGO (CBS) – As COVID-19 cases in Chicago continue to grow slowly, city officials say the city is now at “medium risk” and they are recommending people wear masks indoors again.

The Chicago Department of Public Health also said Chicago residents should make sure they are aware of their vaccinations and stimulants against COVID-19, get screened if they are exposed to the virus, and continue to follow isolation and quarantine protocols if they give a positive result.

“We have been waiting for the middle level for some time,” CDPH Commissioner Dr Alison Arvadie said in a statement. “This is not a cause for concern, as most cases are now mild, and fortunately our hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 remain at or close to a minimum for the entire pandemic in Chicago. But this is reason for greater caution and more caution with masks As more and more people in Chicago are now infected with COVID, remember that people can spread COVID for two days before they develop symptoms, so wearing a mask in public is an easy way to protect our city while we are The average level of COVID.

The transition to the average risk level is due to the last average daily number of cases in Chicago to 754 cases per day, which is 16% more than last week. The average level of positivity in the city is 4.1% compared to 3.7% a week ago.

“Chicago is moving to the middle level no “It means a citywide mandate for masks, restrictions on public gatherings or the resumption of vaccination requirements at this time,” Arvadi said. “Given how COVID’s current options are behaving, these are measures we will consider if we reach a community with a high level of COVID-19 level that we are not close to achieving in Chicago right now. But we obviously don’t want to get to this, and more caution will help us keep COVID under control in Chicago. ”

Health experts say it was not unexpected, but it has revived the call for people to get boosters when they are eligible.

This includes those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. FDA limiting its use due to some blood clotting problemsbut Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Chicago School of Medicine, says it’s less about this rare side effect and more about the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, which provide more protection.

“This decision to limit its use to certain individuals does not mean that the FDA process did not work or that we failed to understand it, it is not a safe vaccine; it just says we have the best option, so please use it, ”Landon said.

Landon said those who had already contracted COVID-19 but contracted it again were more likely to find that their symptoms were less severe, but the risks for immunocompromised people remain.

Landon also suggests that people should wear masks indoors as a precaution. She adds that with unregistered positive tests at home the number of cases is actually three to four times more than reported.

She also warns that people who were infected with the Omicron variant in December or January may get COVID again, albeit a less severe case.

Over the past two weeks, DuPage County, Lake and Cook suburbs have also moved to medium risk.