203 Illinoisans Die From Coronavirus Over Weekend, And 21903 Cases Reported – Block Club Chicago

CHICAGO Coronavirus killed 203 Illinoisans over the weekend, according to state data.

Among the most recent victims were 88 people from Cook County, including a man in his 30s. At least 11,506 people have died from COVID-19 in Illinois, and another 545 deaths are considered to be probably related to coronavirus.

The state also reported 21,903 confirmed cases over the weekend. That brings the total number of confirmed cases in Illinois up to 656,298.

With Chicago and the rest of Illinois firmly in the midst of a second wave of COVID-19, officials are urging everyone to cancel their Thanksgiving plans and stay home. The states top doctor said getting a negative test does not mean you can safely gather for Thanksgiving since you can have and spread coronavirus but still get a negative test.

Coronavirus could kill up to 45,000 more Illinoisansbetween now and March without restrictions, Gov. JB Pritzker said this week.

RELATED:Chicago-Area Health Care Workers Completely Burned Out As Hospitalizations Soar With No End In Sight

To prevent more deaths and to slow down the virus and hopefully avert a full stay at home order the entire state is under Tier 3 restrictions as of Friday morning. The rules close museums, casinos and theaters; cut capacity at stores; stop indoor sports and put stricter rules in place at gyms and salons, among other things.

Chicago is under a stay at home advisory. People are being asked to stay home as much as possible, leaving only for essential things like grocery shopping; to work from home if possible; to stop gathering with anyone outside their household; and to stop traveling.

People should also wear masks and wash their hands regularly, officials have said.

The surge in new cases in Chicago and across Illinois can only partially be explained by increased testing; in reality, there are more cases because coronavirus is spreading so much, officials have said. Theres evidence of that in the way positivity rates and COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations have rapidly risen in recent weeks.

Illinois seven-day positivity rate was at 11.3 percent Sunday with 92,437 tests reported. It was at 11.5 percent Friday. The figure represents total confirmed cases divided by total tests.

Illinois seven-day test positivity, which measures how many tests were positive out of total tests, fell to 13 percent Sunday. It was at 13.4 percent Friday.

As of Sunday night, 6,072 people were hospitalized with coronavirus in Illinois, including 1,179 people in the ICU and 589 people using ventilators.

In Chicago, 36 deaths and 4,081 cases were reported over the weekend. At least 3,335 people have died from COVID-19 in the city and there have been 149,084 confirmed cases, according to state data.

An average of 2,076 confirmed cases are being reported per day, a 13 percent decrease from the prior week. The citys seven-day positivity rate is at 14.2 percent, down from 15.7 percent the week before.

The city is seeing an average of 12 deaths from coronavirus per day, up from 10 deaths the week prior.

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203 Illinoisans Die From Coronavirus Over Weekend, And 21903 Cases Reported - Block Club Chicago