Coles County Risk Metrics Indicator Moves to Orange Warning

The Illinois Department of Public Health is monitoring several indicators that measure the health burden of COVID-19 in each Illinois county and capture a county’s ability to respond. These metrics are intended to be used for local level awareness of each county’s progress and will help local leaders, businesses, local health departments, and the public make informed decisions and promote healthy behaviors. By applying the same metrics to each county, IDPH is using a standardized approach to monitor the state as a whole. Each county will be assessed to determine whether it is meeting or exceeding each indicator target. Counties meeting set targets will be indicated in blue, while counties that are not meeting the targets will be indicated in orange.

How to use these data

Individuals, families, and community groups can use these critical data to help inform their choices about personal and family gatherings, as well as what activities they choose to do.

• Blue indicates that the county is experiencing overall stable COVID-19 metrics.
• Orange indicates there are warning signs of increased COVID-19 risk in the county.

For example, if the local area is currently orange, some questions you should consider include: Should I still attend or host a large gathering? Are there additional precautions I should take given my personal/family health risks? Should I wait to dine out or go to a movie?

1. What data are being used to determine the status of a county?
2. 8 different indicators are being used:

• New cases
• Test positivity
• COVID-like-illness (CLI) ED visits
• CLI admissions
• Clusters
• New deaths
• ICU availability
• Number of tests

1. Does every indicator have to be met for a county be listed as “Warning?”
2. If there are two or more indicators that are going in the wrong direction, the county will be color coded orange – Warning. However, information surrounding clusters and the number of tests provides contextual information and does not directly tie into whether a county is meeting or not meeting the goal.

1. What happens for a county that is in the Warning level and how does it fit with the resurgence regions?

1. The county-level risk indicators are a warning that a county could be headed the wrong direction and people should take additional steps to slow the spread of the virus. Because the virus does not stop at county borders, neighboring counties could also be experiencing, or starting to experience, an increase in cases, emergency department visits, or outbreaks. When multiple counties enter the Warning level, criteria for resurgence regions may also be tripped and tiered mitigation should be considered. These include measures such as additional limits on gatherings or further reduced indoor capacity at gyms and retail stores, suspending indoor bar service, closing businesses tied to an outbreak, and take out only for restaurants.

1. Are there any additional requirements or enforcement based on whether a county is or is not meeting the target indicators?

1. The map is meant to help people make informed decisions about their actions. If they see the county they live in is orange, it is a warning to them that the risk of COVID-19 is increasing. The hope is that people will take this warning to heart and adjust their personal behavior, including their mitigation strategies, to help lower the risk.

1. If a county is “blue,” does that mean mitigation measures aren’t needed?
2. A county that is not in the warning level should still be implementing all Phase 4 measures. People should be wearing face coverings, not gathering for large events, keeping distance between people, limiting indoor capacity, etc. The virus is still circulating, but the county is considered to be in a stable status.

The goal of county-level data is to help people determine the risk for infection and what personal actions they can take to help prevent spread of the virus.

The links below will assist in reviewing Illinois data, Region 6 data, and Coles County data:

Restore Illinois – Mitigation Plan - https://coronavirus.illinois.gov/s/restore-illinois-mitigation-plan

Illinois Regional COVID-19 Resurgence Criteria - https://dph.illinois.gov/regionmetrics?regionID=6

Coles County Level COVID-19 Risk Metrics - https://dph.illinois.gov/countymetrics?county=Coles