FOREST PARK, Ill. (WREX) � Illinois is just  and the state's top doctor is encouraging you to get the vaccine.
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, the Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, spoke Thursday at a vaccination site in Forest Park, Illinois.
Dr. Ezike reiterated the effectiveness and encouraged people to get the vaccine.
"The three COVID-19 vaccines currently authorized for use in the United States are all highly effective in preventing serious illness, hospitalizations and death," Dr. Ezike said.
Dr. Ezike also provided more context for the hospitalization numbers this year.
"Since this January, of the more than 2.5 million people who are fully vaccinated, we see that only 72 were hospitalized with COVID-19," Dr. Ezike said. "The overwhelming majority of COVID hospitalizations are in people who have not been vaccinated."
Dr. Ezike because there's still a lot of people who haven't been vaccinated, hospitalizations continue to rise in the state.
"Since March 12, there were under 1100 people in the hospital with COVID-19. Yesterday, we reported almost 1800 people in the hospital," Dr. Ezike said.
1,798 individuals in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19 on Wednesday. Of those, 351 patients were in the ICU and 151 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
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