COVID-19 cases continue to increase statewide, with 88 of the 102 counties now at an increased risk of transmission.
That’s up from 86 counties last week, although fewer counties are considered at high risk as opposed to medium. State Department of Public Health Spokesperson Mike Claffey says flu activity is also high so it is important to watch for any symptoms.
“We really want to emphasize if you are feeling the symptoms of the flu or COVID, sniffles, a scratchy throat, any of those types of symptoms, it is really important you take a COVID test before you attend a family gathering.”
Public health officials also encourage lots of hand washing and making sure areas with lots of people are well-ventilated to help stop the spread of viruses.
There were 23,793 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 in the week ending Thursday. There were 82 new deaths in the past week.
As of Thursday night, there were 1,814 individuals in Illinois who were in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 184 were in the ICU and 17 were on ventilators.
Claffey says households can request four free COVID tests by visiting the website: COVID.Gov/tests.
