March 15th, 2020 – Champaign Urbana Public Health District has announced the first case of COVID-19 in Champaign County. The resident is a female in her 50s and is in home isolation and recovering. Public health officials are identifying and contacting all close contacts. The resident had not traveled recently but had been in contact with someone that had traveled to Italy recently. She presented in the ER with a fever, cough, and shortness of breath. The resident had reached out to her primary care physician before coming to the emergency room at Carle. The Champaign Urbana Public Health District stated that they have 50 other cases that are awaiting test results at this time.
The Illinois Department of Public Health today announced 29 new cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) across Illinois. Counties now reporting cases – Champaign, Clinton, Sangamon, Whiteside, and Winnebago. Other locations with cases include Chicago and Cook, Cumberland, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, St. Clair, and Woodford counties.
“We are seeing the number of COVID-19 cases increase exponentially and in more locations across Illinois,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “At this point, it is best to assume that the coronavirus is circulating in your community and you should take the same precautions when interacting with other people that you would when interacting with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. This may seem like an extreme step, but this is how we reduce the number of new cases and prevent the health care system from being overwhelmed.”
Currently, IDPH is reporting 93 cases in 13 counties in Illinois. Cases have occurred in all age ranges and the number of cases that do not have a clear connection to travel or a known COVID-19 case is increasing.
Social distancing measures, such as working from home when possible, limiting the amount of time spent in the community, and trying to avoid public transportation as much as possible, will help reduce the number of people who become sick at any given time and the possibility of exhausting our health care resources.
For information about how you, your school, workplace, and community can prepare, please visit Preventing COVID-19 Spread in Communities. For general questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
A list of local health departments can be found on the IDPH website.
