COVID-19 deaths rise by 59; Pritzker suggests eventual reopening by region
The toll of Illinoisans dying from COVID-19 rose by 59 people Monday, a relatively low tally compared to that of recent days, state officials announced, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker suggested the state might reopen on a "region-by-region" basis.
The average number of fatalities from the respiratory disease in the last week was nearly 80 people per day, and total deaths statewide are 1,349. Cases of COVID-19 increased by 1,151 over one day, for a total of 31,508 in Illinois since the pandemic began.
Officials believe the state's caseload is leveling off but haven't decided whether to extend or change a stay-at-home order that goes through April 30. Schools were closed for in-person attendance for the rest of the year on Friday.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker spoke of using a "region-by-region" approach to restarting businesses and allowing people to return to work.
"There's a lot of distance between people's homes in rural areas of Illinois, and so the idea of people going outside and wearing a mask on a property of theirs that might be 100 acres or 10 acres is much different from the prospect of somebody on the North Side or the West Side of Chicago going out and walking on the sidewalk with hundreds of other people," Pritzker said.
Another consideration would be if there's an area where "hospital capacity is quite large and very available - even with the coronavirus - that might be a place where you could do more," Pritzker said.
"The important thing is we want to keep people safe and have the ability to do as much as possible without spreading the virus."
Hospitalizations for COVID-19 grew from 3,680 patients on April 6 to 4,599 Sunday, officials said.
As hospitals increase intensive care units, 43% of 2,700 ICU beds were occupied by COVID-19 patients on April 6 compared to 40% of 3,100 ICU beds Sunday.
Asked about United Food and Commercial Workers International Union estimates that 30 workers have died as a result of COVID-19, Pritzker said he's concerned about grocery stores without 6-feet social distancing markers or mask policies.
That "leads me to think hard about whether we should require people to wear a mask when they go to public places like that."
Also Monday, Pritzker said the state is moving to preemptively conduct tests at long-term care facilities that don't have outbreaks, prioritizing ones "that are home to populations where COVID-19 infections are more likely to lead to more higher-severity cases, especially those in black and brown populations."
Asked about situations where nursing homes are refusing to accept residents who have recovered from COVID-19, IDPH Director Ngozi Ezike said officials were working on a solution and "trying to figure out the right times when they are deemed no longer infectious."
The number of people tested is inching up as the state partners with health clinics in high-risk areas. The percentage of Illinoisans tested for COVID-19 stands at nearly 1.2% Monday compared to less than 1% Thursday.
Monday's 1,151 tally of additional cases was lower than the seven-day average of 1,354.