South Cook News

Cook County residents are halfway through a month-long stay-at-home recommendation from health officials meant to slow down a  record raise in COVID-19 cases. 

Pandemic numbers hit a high with 15,415 COVID-19 cases on Nov. 13, and leaders in Cook County advised that residents stay home whenever possible to reduce the spread of the virus.

Three suburban areas also fell below levels for available hospital beds, and the Illinois Department of Health reported 27 deaths from respiratory disease.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker | Courtesy Photo

"We ask Illinoisans to stay at home as much as possible because the situation we face now is increasingly dangerous for health care workers and hospital systems," Gov. J.B. Pritzker said at a briefing, the Daily Herald reported in November. "More Illinoisans are in the hospital battling COVID-19 than we saw at our highest average in spring. And increasingly, regions are at risk for potential ICU bed shortages and staffing shortages as our case rates continue to rise."

The 30-day stay-at-home recommendation started on Nov. 16. The county suggested that employees work remotely

"We have to be on guard against complacency," IDPH Executive Director Ngozi Ezike said, the Daily Herald reported. "This virus spreads quickly, and it's gaining on us. These are all-time highs."

Nov. 16 saw a 121% increase in cases compared to Nov. 1, the Daily Herald reported. The average daily patient count is 4,767 hospitalizations in the last seven days. The average daily patients were 3,604 from Oct. 30 to Nov. 5, increasing 32% or 1,162 people.

"We are seeing capacity decrease everywhere," Ezike said, the Daily Herald reported. "Everyone's trying to make plans on how to brace for that and be able to have care for not just the COVID-19 patients, but if someone has a heart attack tomorrow — that person's also going to want a bed in a hospital."