Illinois COVID-19 deaths cross 8,000 threshold
Illinois marked another grim milestone for COVID-19 this weekend as the number of deaths surpassed 8,000.
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 11 additional confirmed deaths on Saturday out of the state's 102 counties, bringing the number to 8,008. New confirmed positive cases of coronavirus disease in the state rose by 1,880 to 231,363, the department announced Saturday.
Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 48,784 tests for a total of 3,973,089.
Though suburban Cook County announced no recorded deaths on Saturday, it did see a jump of 333 positive COVID-19 cases for a cumulative total of 54,575.
Due to the increase in positive case rates and deaths, suburban Cook County's COVID-19 restrictions might tighten.
The Cook County Department of Public Health reported that suburban Cook County is currently at 112 positive COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people — the third week the county has been above 90 cases per 100,000 people. The target established by the state is 50 cases per 100,000 people.
“Please work with us and follow the guidance. These steps help protect you, your family, and your community,” said Dr. Rachel Rubin in a Cook County Department of Public Health statement. “We can beat this thing if we all work together.”