Illinois sets another daily record for new COVID-19 cases

Nov. 6--New COVID-19 cases set another record Friday as Gov. JB Pritzker continued to sidestep questions about what new mitigations will be imposed if the virus continues unchecked.

Public health officials also said Friday that from now on both confirmed and probable cases of the virus will be reported in accordance with new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said that means "the total number of cases since the beginning of the pandemic that we report today is going to look quite a bit higher."

IDPH is reporting the state has had a total of 465,540 confirmed and probable cases since the start of the pandemic. That appears to be an 18,049 increase since Thursday.

However, nearly 8,000 of those are probable cases being reported for the first time. IDPH said the caseload increase from Thursday is 10,376, which is a new record.

Another 49 people died from the coronavirus bringing the death toll to 10,079.

Other measurements of the virus continue to rise with 4,090 people hospitalized, 786 in the intensive care unit and 339 on ventilators.

The state positivity rate climbed again, this time to 9.6%.

"We're definitely, potentially coming to a point where it could go exponential," Pritzker said. "If it does go exponential, then we'll be in a world of hurt. We're in a bad situation now."

Pritzker said Thursday that continued growth in all of the COVID-19 numbers could send the state back to more restrictive measures that were in place last spring when the virus was spreading unchecked. But he again would not be specific about what additional controls he might impose.

"I can't be specific right now," he said. "It's the last thing I want to do, but I'm ready to do it. If we can't make these numbers flatten and head back down again, the only way that science has told us that we can limit the number of cases is by having less interaction. Having less interaction means cutting off people's ability to interact in various places."

That administration posted contact tracing information on the IDPH web site Friday https://www.dph.illinois.gov/ showing the places people are most likely to be exposed to the virus. Bars and restaurants topped the list followed closely by schools and workplaces.

Contact tracing attempts to find where a COVID-19 positive person has been and who the person has been in contact with in the days before being diagnosed.

Pritzker said 57 of the state's 97 health departments have been reaching out to at least 90% of the people who have tested positive for the coronavirus. Sangamon County is among them.

Pritzker pleaded with the public to cooperate with contact tracers if they are called.

"Just like wearing a mask, answering a contact tracer's call is a way to keep your family safe and protect your community," Pritzker said. "No one will reveal your private information or the person who tested positive. But we want to be sure you know you've been in contact with a positive case and what your options are to keep yourself and your family safe."

Contact Doug Finke: doug.finke@sj-r.com, 788-1527, twitter.com/dougfinkesjr

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