State will reimpose restrictions on southwest Illinois if COVID-19 cases increase
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Tuesday the state will reimpose restrictions on businesses in the metro-east if the spread of the coronavirus continues to worsen.
“The metro-east region has one of the highest rates of cases and transmissions in the state even as the rest of the state remains steady,” Pritzker said at a news conference in Collinsville.
The restrictions could affect bars and restaurants, hair salons and fitness centers in a return to pandemic rules under Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan.
The metro-east region as defined by the Illinois Department of Public Health includes St. Clair, Madison, Bond, Clinton, Monroe, Washington and Randolph counties.
On July 17, the metro-east saw 7.1% of tests come back positive, bringing the region within a percentage point of the 8% threshold that would automatically trigger restrictions.
The state’s overall positivity rate is 3%, Pritzker said.
“We’ve all seen the death toll rising in Arizona, Texas, Alabama, North Carolina and California,” Pritzker said. “This is no joke. This is no hoax. The metro-east is [as] at risk as any area in the country of tipping over into the higher case and death counts.”
Coronavirus criteria
While St. Clair and Madison counties account for most of the region’s cases, other counties have reported recent outbreaks. Clinton County health officials have asked 160 people to quarantine after possibly exposure to COVID-19.
The governor announced metrics last week that could trigger the return of some restrictions in 11 regions throughout Illinois, including the metro-east.
The metro-east region had seen seven days of increases in the number of coronavirus tests coming back positive, or the positivity rate, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health’s regional metrics.
Here are the criteria to bring restrictions back to the metro-east or other regions of the state:
- Three consecutive days averaging at or above an 8% positivity rate. The positivity rate is the percentage of coronavirus tests that were positive. This alone will trigger restrictions.
- Or increase in the seven-day rolling average of the region’s positivity rate for seven out of 10 days.
Plus one of the following:
- An increase in hospital admissions for a COVID-19-like illness for seven days.
- Intensive care unit capacity or medical/surgical bed capacity below 20%. In other words, a reduction in hospitals’ ability to handle a surge in patients.
Reverse openings
St. Clair and Madison counties have the highest case count in the metro-east. St. Clair County Chairman Mark Kern said while the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 is down, county health officials are still concerned.
“As we see this going up and down, it seems like those peaks are getting higher, which means that at some point, we’re going to have to pull back on some of the openings that were made because we’ve got to get a handle on this before it starts peaking to a point where the hospitals can’t handle the caseload,” Kern, a Democrat, said Monday during a news conference.
Madison County Chairman Kurt Prenzler, a Republican, said he and county health leaders encourage people “to be responsible,” including in a May 12 resolution that defied some orders from the state.
Asked if Madison County would take similar measures if the state reimposes restrictions, Prenzler said the scenario is “dealing in hypotheticals.”
“Our residents are capable of using their good common sense to be responsible,” Prenzler said. “If there is an establishment that is a danger to the public health, then we will address it.”
Area leaders and Pritzker repeatedly called on residents to wear masks, avoid crowds, maintain social distance and to wash their hands frequently. Yet metro-east residents ignored at least some of the recommendations over the July 4th holiday and as they take summer vacations, leading to the recent increases.
And the debate over masks continues, with some residents refusing to wear them, much to the frustration of hospital workers, said Mike McManus, president of Memorial Hospital Belleville.
“Not wanting to wear a mask, I just can’t understand it because it’s a simple precaution and it’s shown that it’s showing benefits,” McManus said Monday.
Meantime, younger people are making up the bulk of cases.
St. Clair County recorded its highest one-day increase in new cases Saturday, and 58 of the 105 people with positive test results, or 55%, were under 40.
This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 12:20 PM.
