State reports 1,893 new COVID-19 cases as testing surge continues
State health authorities on Sunday reported 1,893 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Illinois, as well as six additional deaths from the coronavirus.
Five of the six deaths occurred in Cook County, including a woman and a man in their 40s, officials said.
The additional cases bring the state's total to 220,178, along with 7,880 deaths.
After setting a single-day record with 56,766 tests reported Saturday, officials announced 54,351 more on Sunday, bringing the total to more than 3.7 million since the pandemic's onset.
It's the fifth consecutive day of reports of more than 50,000 tests. Before Wednesday, the state hadn't eclipsed the 50,000-test mark on a single day.
The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity rate for Aug. 16-22 is 4.2%, about the same as it's been for the past week.
As of Saturday night, 1,449 people were hospitalized in the state with COVID-19. Of those, 339 were in an intensive-care unit and 117 were on ventilators.
On Saturday, state officials recorded 2,356 new cases, the highest number since May 24, when there were 2,508.