(WTTW News)

The holiday season is here, and Thursday, state health officials reported nearly 12,000 COVID-19 infections for the first time all year.

The 11,858 new confirmed and probable cases of the virus are the highest total reported in a 24-hour period in 2021, according to Illinois Department of Public Health data.

Officials also reported 52 deaths Thursday.

The grim milestone comes amid a surge of infections and the arrival of the omicron variant in Chicago and suburban Cook County, as well as on the heels of the one-year anniversary of administration of the first COVID-19 vaccines in the state.

More than 7.6 million Illinois residents, or 59% of the state’s population, are fully vaccinated, according to state vaccine data. Of those eligible to be vaccinated (residents ages 5 and up), 67.5% are fully vaccinated, according to IDPH data.

Nearly 2 million have been infected with COVID-19 and 27,065 have died statewide from the virus since the pandemic began, according to IDPH.

The seven-day statewide test positivity rate is now 5.9%, according to IDPH data.

All of Illinois’ 102 counties are experiencing high transmission of COVID-19, defined by IDPH as areas with more than 100 cases per 100,000 people over a seven-day period.

In Cook County, the average seven-day case rate per 100,000 people is 308.10, according to state data.

Chicago is now recording 969 cases per day based on a seven-day average, according to Chicago Department of Public Health data. In the past week, the number of cases has decreased 1%, according to city data.

The city’s COVID-19 test positivity rate is now 4.4%, up 4% from a week ago.

Contact Kristen Thometz: @kristenthometz | (773) 509-5452 |  [email protected]