As Illinois has seen a majority of its coronavirus deaths in longterm care facilities — approximately 53% — Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday defended implementing a stay-at-home order on the state's general population.
A total of 3,144 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported at longterm care facilities statewide out of a total of 5,924 deaths, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
Pritzker on Monday acknowledged that combating the coronavirus in longterm care facilities has been an "enormous challenge" for Illinois and every other U.S. state.
"The fact is that the stay-at-home order was designed also to save [lives] and to keep -us] healthy, the rest of the population, because it's not like it's limited to nursing homes," he said.
Pritzker touted early intervention, such as doing medical checks on those who entered longterm care facilities, for helping Illinois bring down the coronavirus curve quicker than other states.
As of Monday, a total of 18,840 coronavirus cases had been reported at Illinois longterm facilities, which comes to approximately 14.7% of the state's 128,415 cases.
Illinois' statewide stay-at-home order lasted more than two months and only permitted essential travel as an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
