CHICAGO (WLS) — Chicago continues to see a surge in COVID cases in late summer.
Health officials say more people are being diagnosed in emergency rooms, but new COVID vaccines will soon be hitting pharmacies.
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Events like the Democratic and Republican conventions in Chicago and Milwaukee are among the major indoor summer events that took place during a surge in COVID cases.
“Unfortunately, the DNC took place at the height of the COVID outbreak this summer,” said Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at UChicago Medicine.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between August 11 and 17, 2.5% of emergency room patients were diagnosed with COVID-19.
This is an increase from 1.7% in the same period in July.
A similar increase is occurring in Chicago.
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“It turns out that people who have had a respiratory virus in the last month or so probably had COVID, whether you got tested for it or not. That also means we’re seeing more patients in the hospital, more patients getting sick,” Landon said.
“With all the travel to summer events, there is potential for viral disease to spread,” said Alexander Sloboda, medical director of immunization and emergency preparedness programs at the Chicago Department of Public Health.
Over the weekend, CVS pharmacies began procuring the new updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine, designed to prevent complications and severe illness.
Patients can schedule appointments for COVID vaccinations or simply stop by their local CVS Pharmacy.
Health experts are urging Chicago residents to get the new vaccine unless they have recently had COVID.
“We encourage everyone, anyone over 6 months old,” Sloboda said.
“If you didn’t have COVID this summer, there’s still a lot of COVID. And half the people – we’re at the peak right now – then half the people who are going to get COVID in this wave haven’t gotten COVID yet. So you probably want to take precautions and be a little extra careful,” Landon said.
The challenge with tracking COVID cases is that so many people are testing at home and their illnesses are not at a level of severity that requires emergency care, so they are not reported.
Health experts urge you to stay home if you have a respiratory illness and to wear a mask when you return to your activities if you have symptoms.
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