COVID-19 surge from Thanksgiving could start this week in Illinois, officials say
Metro-east officials and Gov. J.B. Pritzker say the effects Thanksgiving had on the spread of COVID-19 will become apparent in the coming days, but cases stemming from the holiday could continue to appear through Christmas Eve.
During a daily press conference on Illinois’ battle with the deadly virus, Pritzker said it will take up to two incubation periods to see and understand the effect Thanksgiving had on the spread of COVID-19 statewide. He said an increase in cases could start now and last through Christmas Eve.
For local officials, that’s worrisome.
St. Clair County Chairman Mark Kern said the county is waiting to see how the holiday affects COVID-19 rates in the county and region and warned viewers of the county’s daily COVID-19 report that hospitals were “filling up fast.” The county reported 227 new cases of coronavirus Tuesday and an additional death.
“It’s really important that we get this number down, especially if we see an uptick because of this Thanksgiving holiday,” Kern said.
Herb Simmons, the county’s emergency management agency director, said the officials he’s spoken with at regional hospitals are concerned about the number of patients that could need treatment in the coming month. He said the coming of Christmas and more family gatherings could bring things to a breaking point.
“They’re still concerned,” Simmons said. “It’s not just for the COVID-19 patients but for all the patients that need to go there and seek treatment.”
“We’ve gotta do our best,” he added, pleading for viewers to wear a mask, maintain social distance, avoid family gatherings for the holidays and wash their hands. “It’s not going to mysteriously disappear. We’ve got to do our part.”
Simmons said with multiple vaccines nearing approval for distribution throughout the country, the county and region need to stay vigilant and continue fighting the virus.
“We’re going from one (holiday) right into another,” Simmons said. “We can’t let our guard down. We’re close and there is light is at the end of this long tunnel.”
Metro-east positivity rate back on the rise as hospitals fill
The metro-east’s positivity rate increased for the second day in a row Tuesday, after more than a week of declines.
Region 4’s rolling 7-day average was 14.3% on Tuesday, up from 14% on Monday., the Illinois Department of Public Health reported. The new rate is based on tests recorded as of Nov. 28. A region’s positivity rate is its percentage of positive COVID-19 tests versus the number of tests taken over a 7-day period.
Meanwhile, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 83.4% of staffed intensive care unit beds in the metro-east were in use as of Tuesday, up from 81.7% Monday. Additionally, 15.8% of the metro-east’s staffed hospital beds were available for patient use, the same rate as Monday.
Under rules set by the Restore Illinois plan, if a region falls below the 20% threshold of clinically staffed hospital beds, the state may impose tighter restrictions.
Tier 3 restrictions went into place statewide on Friday, Nov. 20. The third tier tightens restrictions on indoor dining, bars and social gatherings while adding restrictions to casinos, retailers, video gaming and museums.
Over the past weeks, officials have warned about the possibility of the region running low on hospital and ICU beds, prompting some area hospitals to temporarily cease elective surgeries. More recently, officials have publicly worried that the Thanksgiving holiday could lead to another spike in cases and deaths.
The state classifies the metro-east as Region 4, which covers seven counties: St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Bond, Washington, Clinton and Randolph. County-by-county data is available on the state health department’s website.
Additionally, the region reported a daily positivity rate of 14% on Tuesday, down from 14.2% on Monday.
Illinois reports new cases, deaths Tuesday
This information is provided by the Illinois Department of Public Health. The number in parentheses shows the difference from the previous day’s increase or total.
New cases: 12,542 (+6,352)
New deaths: 125 (+40)
New tests: 116,081 (+49,101)
Total cases: 738,846
Total deaths: 12,403
Total tests: 10,614,079
Hospitalizations: 5,835 (-14)
People in ICU: 1,195 (-22)
People on ventilators: 721 (+7)
Statewide positivity rate (from Nov. 24–Nov. 30): 10.4% (+0.2%)
Tuesday’s COVID-19 breakdown for Region 4
New cases (as of 4 p.m. Tuesday): 587
New deaths (as of 4 p.m. Tuesday): 3 (St. Clair County reported one death and Madison County reported two)
Daily positivity rate (as of Saturday): 14.0% (-0.2%)
Seven-day rolling average positivity rate (as of Saturday): 14.3% (+0.3%)
Regional hospitalizations: 233
Regional patients on ventilators: 22
Hospital bed availability: 15.8% (no changes)
ICU bed availability: 16.6% (-1.7%)
ST. CLAIR COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 227 new positives, 1,441 new tests administered, 1 new death
Total overall: 15,207 positives, 160,127 tests administered, 255 deaths, 12,612 recoveries, 106 patients hospitalized with 7 patients on ventilators
Additional data: New positives include residents who ranged in age from under 1 up to the 90s. Of the 227 new positives, 145 were individuals 40 years of age or younger.
Congregate living facilities: Aperion Care Center in Mascoutah reported 1 new case, Caseyville Nursing and Rehab reported 1 new case, Integrity Healthcare in Belleville reported 1 new case and St. Paul’s Home reported 6 new cases and 1 new death.
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 13.4% (-1.4%); 7-day average — 13.6% (+0.3%)
MADISON COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 177 new confirmed positives, 12 probable positives, 1,192 new tests administered, 2 new deaths
Total overall: 14,397 positives, 148,376 tests administered, 258 deaths, 7,069 recoveries, 94 patients hospitalized with 15 patients on ventilators
Additional data: New positives include residents who ranged in age from under 10 up to the 90s. Of the 189 new positives, 113 were individuals 40 years of age or younger.
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 15.3% (+2.2%); 7-day average — 13.7% (+0.1%)
CLINTON COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 43 new positives
Total overall: 3,380 positives, 57 deaths, 2,628 recoveries, 15 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily —11.9% (-0.1%); 7-day average — 17.1% (+0.5%)
RANDOLPH COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 49 new positives
Total overall: 2,359 positives, 23,115tests administered, 27 deaths, 2,101 recoveries, 4 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 11.5% (-3.1%); 7-day average — 13.5% (+0.6%)
MONROE COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 25 new positives
Total overall: 2,136 positives, 45 deaths, 16 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 17% (-10.8%); 7-day average — 17.6% (+1.0%)
BOND COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 29 new positives
Total overall: 1,047 positives, 31,211 tests administered, 11 deaths, 1 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 4.9% (-6.4%); 7-day average — 12.8% (no change)
WASHINGTON COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: No new data as of 4 p.m.
Total overall: 710 positives, 2 deaths, 603 recoveries, 6 patients hospitalized
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily —34.1% (+10.4%); 7-day average — 27.4% (+0.3%)
MACOUPIN COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: No new data as of 4 p.m.
Total overall: 2,400 positives, 27 deaths, 768 recoveries
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 21.7% (+4.1%); 7-day average — 10.6% (+0.3%)
JERSEY COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: No new data as of 4 p.m.
Total overall: 1,298 positives, 13,243 tests administered, 22 deaths, 1,043 recoveries
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 26.9% (+21.3%); 7-day average — 12.5 (+1.5%)
PERRY COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: 15 new positives, 5 new deaths
Total overall: 1,169 positives, 31 deaths, 809 recoveries
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 21.8% (-0.5%); 7-day average — 20.0% (+1.4)
CALHOUN COUNTY
Tuesday’s new data: No new data as of 4 p.m.
Total overall: 251 positives, 1 death, 184 recoveries
Positivity rates (as of Saturday): Daily — 32.4% (+25.7%); 7-day average — 11.2% (+4.0%)
Editor’s note: The number of new COVID-19 cases for ZIP codes in each county are reported on Mondays. Information comes from county sources and the IDPH website.
State, nation, world COVID-19 statistics
Here are the latest available statistics from the Illinois Department of Public Health and Johns Hopkins University’s coronavirus map as of Tuesday afternoon:
- Illinois: 738,846 cases, 12,403 deaths, 10,614,079 tests
- U.S.: 13,653,957 cases, 269,667 deaths, 5,146,319 recoveries
- World: 63,621,474 cases, 1,475,851 deaths, 40,803,156 recoveries
Testing sites in southwestern Illinois
Here are some upcoming coronavirus testing options:
- Friday, Dec. 4: Belle-Claire Fairgrounds, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 pm. to 4 p.m., 200 S. Belt E, Belleville
- Tuesday, Dec 8-9: McKendree University 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 pm. to 4 p.m., 701 COllege Rd, Lebanon
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.
Staff writer Lexi Cortes contributed to this story.
This story was originally published December 1, 2020 at 4:30 PM.