Illinois reported nearly 1,400 new cases of the virus on Wednesday, along with 18 additional deaths.
The new cases bring the state’s total number of COVID-19 cases to 175,124 since the pandemic began, according to data from the Illinois Department of Public Health.
With Wednesday's additional 18 fatalities, Illinois is now at 7,462 COVID-19 related deaths during the pandemic.
Officials reported 38,187 new coronavirus test specimens turned into state labs over the last 24 hours, bringing the statewide total to more than 2.5 million during the ongoing pandemic. That marks a jump of nearly 10,000 tests from one day earlier.
The state’s seven-day positivity rate stayed flat at 3.8% after rising from the 3.6% reported Sunday.
While Illinois’ hospitalization and ventilator usage numbers have both been either stagnant or declining in recent weeks, ICU usage by COVID-19 patients has crept up in recent days, although it still remains fairly close to the state’s low watermark in that metric. As of midnight, 355 COVID-19 patients are in intensive care units statewide.
Illinois was one of three states added to New York, New Jersey and Connecticut's joint list of states requiring travelers to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
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Illinois, Kentucky and Minnesota, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, were among the latest newcomers to the quarantine-restricted list, a joint effort announced last month by Govs. Cuomo, Phil Murphy and Ned Lamont to protect the tri-state's progress against the virus, NBC New York reported.
Illinois health officials recently said four state counties reached "warning" levels for their coronavirus metrics.
Adams, LaSalle, Peoria and Randolph counties were all named by the state's health department for reaching "two or more COVID-19 risk indicators."
Gov. J.B. Pritzker delivered a coronavirus update from Adams County Monday, sounding the alarm for area residents.
"What's happening here in Adams County is alarming and if these trends continue in the negative direction, the state will need to take immediate action to impose additional mitigations to slow the spread and keep more people from getting sick," he said. "I want to urge the residents of Quincy and all of Adams County to follow the mitigations more rigorously. Wear a mask everywhere you go in public, do not enter a bar or restaurant or any enclosed space if it looks crowded, and keep six feet of physical distance."
