The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 1,640 new cases of coronavirus across the state Wednesday with 45 new deaths. There were no positive case reports from the Lawrence County Health Department and there were only 8 positive cases in Knox County Indiana. Currently, there have been a total of 3,034,701 cases of the disease and 32,848 deaths statewide since the pandemic began. A total of 21,133,040 vaccinations have now been administered at sites across Illinois since the pandemic began with over 4.1 million booster doses given. The IDPH and CDC say that close to 38% of the total Lawrence County population is now fully vaccinated. The CDC is also no longer recommending contact tracing. This comes as new cases and hospitalizations continue to fall across the nation. Health experts say that it is no longer effective as more and more people are testing for COVID at home and not reporting the results. The CDC is instead asking local health departments to focus mediations on high risk areas of spread such as nursing homes, prisons and jails and homeless and other type shelters.