State tops 100 COVID-19 cases
Pritzker says primary to proceed as state emergency head warns against hoarding in coronavirus pandemic
Empty store shelves in an aisle for paper products at a store in Bakersfield, Calif. (Facebook/23ABC)
By Ted Cox
The state planned to go ahead with election day on the Illinois primary Tuesday as cases of COVID-19 infection climbed past 100 and restaurants, bars, and schools prepared to shut down for at least the rest of the month.
“I know it’s easy to be overwhelmed by all the news that’s coming at you right now,” said Gov. Pritzker at his daily coronavirus briefing, held Monday in Springfield at the state Emergency Operation Center. “But I also know that Illinoisans have the courage and the generosity and the empathy to find our way through.”
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, announced that the state had now registered 105 COVID-19 infections in 15 counties, with the latest including Peoria and Will counties.
“People should assume that this novel coronavirus is in their community and take steps to protect themselves and reduce the spread,” Ezike said. “Stay home as much as possible.”
Ezike repeated that the best way to defend against COVID-19 is to adopt the same preventive measures as in fighting off the flu: stay six feet apart from others, wash hands thoroughly for 20 seconds, cough or sneeze into a tissue, clean frequently used surfaces, and use hand sanitizer that’s 60 percent alcohol.
“These are all things we must do,” she added. “It is these steps, however mundane, that will make the biggest difference” in slowing the spread of the virus. “We want to limit the casualties.”
The governor said the National Guard might be called in to serve ancillary medical functions, such as setting up screening tents outside hospitals. “The biggest concern really Is that our hospitals and our health centers will be overrun with cases and that we’ll run out of space, essentially,” Pritzker said.
As such, limiting social contact is intended to slow the spread of the disease and enable hospitals to stay in front of the pandemic, with a resulting drop in potential deaths. As of Sunday, Italy had reported about 25,000 cases of the disease resulting in more than 1,800 deaths — a mortality rate above 7 percent. Other areas around the world that have successfully slowed the outbreak and avoided hospitals being overwhelmed have seen a mortality rate between 1 and 2 percent — still up to 20 times more lethal than influenza.
Pritzker announced last Friday he’d be closing schools, and Monday was to be the last day of education for kindergarten through high school until at least March 31. Over the weekend, he added that restaurants and bar would be closing for at least two weeks, effective at 9 p.m. Monday. He said his administration was looking into expanding unemployment for workers without paid sick leave or who are idled by the response, as well as pursuing a federal waiver to expand Medicaid. He said he was imposing a moratorium on utility shutoffs.
Ezike warned “the worried well” not to demand testing, and to leave tests for the most susceptible citizens: senior citizens and those with compromised immune systems, including diabetics.
Alicia Tate-Nadeau, director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, emphasized that calling “911 is for emergencies,” not health checks, and she warned against making runs on food and goods like toilet paper at stores.
“Hoarding is irresponsible,” she said. “Please stop buying more than you need.”
Pritzker stressed the state has a coronavirus hotline, (800) 889-3931, in English and Spanish, and with Polish and Mandarin soon to be added.
Pritzker defended the closing of bars and restaurants — although restaurants will be allowed to serve delivery and takeout — saying, “This was a difficult decision, but it’s what the medical experts and the scientists tell us that we must do to safeguard the health of the people of Illinois.”
The governor said he’d follow the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to limit public gatherings to 50 people, but he also defended the decision to proceed with Tuesday’s primary.
“We have to have our elections continue, in my opinion,” Pritzker said. “We’re taking every precaution,” with polling places being cleaned and voting screens being wiped down between use. “So I feel good about the decision to have the election go ahead tomorrow,” he added. “I do believe it’s safe.”
Pritzker sat in on a conference call between governors and President Trump earlier Monday, but he continued to criticize the federal government for a slow response to the outbreak, especially in testing. “Precious time has been lost because the White House made some bad decisions early on,” he said. “Because so few tests were done, because so few tests were available because of decisions that were made more than a month ago by the government, we’re stuck with using the little bit of science that we have and then statistics.”
Pritzker said the state has three main labs conducting testing in Chicago, Springfield, and Carbondale, and that 15 hospitals were joining in the effort “ramping up testing to the levels necessary.” But he added, “We need the federal government to lead or follow or get out of the way.
“We have to do everything we can to to protect the people who are most vulnerable,” Pritzker said. “For the people who think they’re the least vulnerable and most invulnerable, the young people who feel just fine and they think they’re just fine because they haven’t heard much about coronavirus affecting people their age, they are carriers potentially. And so, for those out there who think you’re immune, you’re not.
“It is coming unfortunately to everywhere in the state of Illinois,” Pritzker said. “No matter where you live, it will come, so you need to be prepared.”
Pritzker warned that weeks from now people who ignore those warnings will almost certainly regret it through the loss of friends or family members.