CHICAGO — Illinois has reached a total of 90,369 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 2,432 new cases reported.
There were 130 new deaths reported in the last 24 hours, bringing the state’s total to 4,058.
Dr. Ngozi Ezike with the Illinois Department of Public Health discussed the importance of pregnant women getting testing for the virus. After birth, women are more susceptible for more complications if they are COVID positive.
“Testing is crucial in all aspects,” Ezike said.
“Knowing if a mom has COVID-19 will also help physicians determine how to best provide care for that newborn baby.
“A mom should know whether she is at-risk of passing the infection to her baby after they leave the hospital, and help her take steps to protect her infant.”
Gov. J.B Pritzker echoed the sentiment of testing’s importance as Illinois moves into the next phases of the Reopen Illinois Plan.
Pritzker announced four new state-run free testing sites coming to the state, including one at the Peoria Civic Center, set to open Sat., May 23.
There are two main differences between these sites and the locally-run sites.
One, the state-run sites are meant for symptomatic individuals, whereas the locally-run sites are for any individuals.
Two, these state-run sites are set up to accommodate healthcare workers, first responders, correctional facility employees, governmental employees, individuals with chronic medical conditions, and employees of industries that support critical infrastructure (such as grocery store, gas station, and restaurant workers ).
“More tests mean more surveillance so we can respond to where outbreaks are taking place, but just as importantly, testing is fundamental to our ability to reopen the economy while controlling the spread of the virus,” he said.
“That’s what it takes to keep the public safe while getting people back to work and back into the world.”
