Southwest Illinois COVID-19 positivity rate levels off after 8 days straight of increases
The metro-east’s COVID-19 positivity rate stayed at 7% on Saturday, marking the first day in more than a week without an increase.
Since the state eased restrictions last Friday, the region has seen its positivity rate steadily increase from 5.8% last Friday to 7% Friday, before leveling off on Saturday.
After the positivity rate in the metro east, also known as Region 4, fell below 6.5% for three consecutive days, the state eased some restrictions on businesses and gatherings, including a ban on indoor service at bars and restaurants. Region 4 includes St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Bond, Washington, Clinton and Randolph counties.
The state could impose tougher restrictions if the positivity rate is at or above 8% for three straight days.
Statewide a total of 3,692 new cases of COVID-19 were reported, which is down after two days of record-breaking numbers of cases.
During the daily briefing in St. Clair County, officials commended other counties in the region for “stepping up” with their positivity rates, which helped the region’s overall metrics.
“What this shows is when we’re working together, those numbers will be reflected,” said Herb Simmons, St. Clair County Emergency Management director. “ ... Let’s just hope that that 7% (positivity rate) keeps going down.”
There was one more death in St. Clair County, a woman in her 60s with underlying health conditions.
St. Clair officials also spoke about misinformation being spread on social media, referencing one viewer of the daily press briefing on Facebook who sent in some guidance, supposedly from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that said masks weren’t helping. The officials were quickly able to confirm that the so-called “guidance” wasn’t real.
St. Clair County EMA Assistant Director Bryan Whitaker said he was glad the viewer took the step to ask the EMA about the information.
“When people are looking at guidance and documentation, you have to make sure what you’re doing is accurate,” he said. “Unfortunately, when you share something without checking it first, you run the risk of someone else sharing it.”
Illinois reports new cases, deaths Saturday
The following information comes from the Illinois Department of Public Health. The information in parentheses is the difference from the previous day’s totals.
New cases: 3,629
New deaths: 27
New tests: 77,489
Total cases: 339,803
Total deaths: 9,192
Total tests: 6,696,257
Hospitalizations: 2,073 (+57)
People in ICU: 422
People on ventilators: 165
Statewide positivity rate from Oct. 10-16: 5.2% (+0.1%)
Saturday’s COVID-19 case breakdown for Region 4
Data for the region is as of 5 p.m. The information in parentheses is the difference from the previous day’s totals.
New cases: 88
New deaths: two (St. Clair County — a woman in her 60s with underlying health conditions; Monroe County.)
Daily positivity rate as of Oct. 14: 8.9% (+5.2%)
7-day rolling average as of Oct. 14: 7% (No change from Friday)
Hospitalizations: 76 (+1)
Patients on ventilators: five (no change from Friday)
Hospital bed availability: 27%
ICU bed availability: 45%
New cases from nearby counties outside Region 4: 0
New deaths from nearby counties outside Region 4: 0
Southwestern Illinois COVID-19 statistics
ZIP code-level numbers for the entire state are provided by the Illinois Department of Public Health each afternoon at dph.illinois.gov/covid19/covid19-statistics.
The Madison County Health Department compiles its statistics by ZIP code later in the day, so the numbers may differ from what appears on the IDPH website. The Belleville News-Democrat reports the information the local health department provides for Madison County ZIP codes.
ZIP codes with fewer than five cases of the coronavirus are not reported by health officials. The number in parentheses after each ZIP code below reflects the change from the previous day’s cumulative total. A decrease reflects a correction.
All other information comes from local health departments. The “recoveries” figure refers to the number of people who completed the required isolation period in most counties.
Here are the latest available statistics for southwestern Illinois counties:
ST. CLAIR COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: 45 new positives, 981 new tests administered, 50 new recoveries, one new death, six fewer hospitalizations
Total overall: 8,354 positives, 214 deaths, 104,372 tests administered, 7,596 recoveries, 41 patients hospitalized with two of those patients on ventilators
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 4.2 (-0.4%); 7-day average — 5.1% (-0.8)
Additional data: The county’s new cases included people under the age of 10 to people in their 80s.
Congregate living facilities: Mercy Rehab in Swansea and St. Paul’s Home in Belleville each reported one new case.
MADISON COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 6,714 positives, 151 deaths, 90,444 tests administered, 3,337 recoveries, 22 patients hospitalized with 3 of those patients on a ventilator
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 14.5% (+8.2%); 7-day average — 7.7% (+0.4%)
Additional data: People diagnosed with the virus ranged in age from 10 to their 90s, and, of the 96 new cases, 59 were people in their 40s or younger.
CLINTON COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 1,517 positives, 23 deaths, 1,310 recoveries, 10 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 14.8% (+6.8%); 7-day average — 11.3% (+0.8%)
RANDOLPH COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: 31 new positives, 15 new recoveries, one new hospitalization
Total overall: 1,155 positives, 14 deaths, 1,037 recoveries, two hospitalizations
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 5.6% (+0.5%); 7-day average — 8.5% (-0.2)
MONROE COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: 12 new positives, one new death
Total overall: 852 positives, 27 deaths
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 10.4% (+6.4%); 7-day average — 7.2% (-0.6%)
BOND COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 441 positives, 10 deaths, 20,622 tests administered
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 22.2% (+13.1%); 7-day average — 10.8% (+2.1%)
WASHINGTON COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 272 positives, one death, 250 recoveries, three hospitalizations
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 6.3% (+2.9%); 7-day average — 9.1% (-0.9%)
MACOUPIN COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 744 positives, 13 deaths, 390 recoveries
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 14.5% (-5.3%); 7-day average — 7.9% (+1.3%)
JERSEY COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 447 positives, 21 deaths, 363 recoveries, 7,247 tests
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 12.5% (-7.5%); 7-day average — 6.6% (+0.6)
PERRY COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 399 positives, 16 deaths, 352 recoveries
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 14.8% (+2.9%); 7-day average — 7.7% (+2.4%)
CALHOUN COUNTY
Saturday’s new data: No new data as of 5 p.m.
Total overall: 72 positives, 67 recoveries
Positivity rates as of Oct. 14: Daily — 0.0% (no change); 7-day average — 0.0% (no change)
State, nation, world statistics
Here are the latest available statistics from the Illinois Department of Public Health and Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus map as of Saturday afternoon:
- Illinois: 339,803 cases, 9,192 deaths, 6,696,257 tests
- U.S.: 8,094,418 cases, 219,129 deaths, 3,197,539 recoveries
- World: 39,522,966 cases, 1,107,084 deaths, 27,151,582 recoveries
Testing sites in southwestern Illinois
These are free COVID-19 testing options in the following locations.
- Saturday, Oct. 17; and Sunday, Oct. 18: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Monroe Count Annex, 901 Illinois Ave., Waterloo).
Wednesday, Oct. 21, and Thursday, Oct. 22: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds, 200 S. Belt E. (drive-thru).
Saturday, Oct. 24, and Sunday, Oct. 25: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Belleville West High School, 4063 Frank Scott Parkway (drive-thru).
No appointment is necessary. Masks are required.
The Illinois Department of Public Health also offers free walk-up and drive-thru COVID-19 testing seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (or until capacity limits are met each day) at the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center, Argonne Drive in East St. Louis (Interstate 64 west, exit 4A).
Capacity is limited. Hours of operation are subject to change based on available equipment. For more information, visit dph.illinois.gov/testing.
Additionally, Touchette Regional Hospital and Southern Illinois Healthcare Foundation offer daily testing in Belleville and Wood River. Call 618-646-2596 for an appointment.
Get the latest news on coronavirus
BND.com will keep you updated throughout the day with information about the spread of the coronavirus in southwestern Illinois.
You can also find the most complete and up-to-date information from government sites including:
- State of Illinois’ COVID-19 page: coronavirus.illinois.gov
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/summary.html
- Federal government’s coronavirus page: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Who to call about mental health
Here are some resources from mental-health professionals for anyone struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic:
- Illinois Human Services Mental Health Division’s Call4Calm: Text the word “talk” to 552020 to text with a mental-health-care professional for free.
- Centerstone of Illinois Inc.: Call 618-462-2331 for virtual mental-health services.
- Chestnut Health Systems: Call 618-877-4420 for virtual mental-health services.
- Narcotics and Alcoholics Anonymous: Call 618-398-9409 or email metroeastnapr@gmail.com to learn about virtual meetings.
- Regional Disaster Mental Health Volunteer Response Team: Call a support line for health-care professionals at 618-381-5173.
Contact BND with tips, concerns, suggestions
If you have suggestions about something for the BND to cover regarding the COVID-19 pandemic or if you see a report that sounds suspicious on social media or anywhere else, please drop us a note at newsroom@bnd.com and include a link. We’ll check it out.
We’d like to hear from healthcare workers
The BND would like to speak with nurses, doctors and other health-care professionals who are on the front lines caring for patients in doctor’s offices, clinics and hospitals during this difficult time. We’re interested in hearing about your challenges and rewards, frustrations and accomplishments. How is this affecting you? Send us an email at newsroom@bnd.com.
Willing to share your COVID-19 story?
Have you recovered from coronavirus or are you in the process of recovering from COVID-19? We would like to hear from you on how you dealt with the respiratory disease. Send us an email at newsroom@bnd.com.
