DECATUR — Five more Macon County residents have died and 131 have tested positive for COVID-19, local health officials said Saturday. Meanwhile, the state reported 11,028 new cases, ending a four-day streak of daily positive records.
The Macon County Health Department identified the five individuals as two women, one in her 70s and one in her 80s, and three men, one in his 70s and two in their 80s. That brings to 88 the number of county deaths linked to coronavirus. There have been 17 deaths since Nov. 8 and 25 for the month.
To date, the county has reported 5,076 positive cases. Of those, 3,301 have been released from isolation, 1,649 are in isolation and 38 are hospitalized. The county has added more than 1,400 new cases this month.
Macon County, as well as the rest of the state, is under enhanced restrictions intended to prevent the spread of the disease. Those restrictions include limits on the size of gatherings and prohibiting indoor food and drink service at bars and restaurants.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has expressed disgust with local officials across the state for failing to enforce the latest restrictions and hasn’t ruled out the more stringent mandates. The Illinois Department of Public Health has already encouraged residents to limit travel away from home for the next three weeks.
Decatur Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe said earlier this month that the city doesn't have the manpower to enforce latest restrictions. However, in response to the increasing number of positive cases locally, the city council is expected to discuss a proposed mask ordinance at its meeting on Monday.
That ordinance would require people within the city limits to wear a mask when shopping or working at retail businesses; picking up food from a restaurant or food establishment, visiting a health care provider; traveling on public transportation, taxis or rideshares; interacting with any other person at a place of business or worship that is open to the general public; performing services for state and local government agencies where close interactions are unavoidable; and when feeling ill.
Exceptions include children under 2; those engaged in physical activity while maintaining social distancing, when alone or with members of the same household; and eating or driving, whether in public or private.
Failure to adhere to the new rules could result in a fine, starting at $50 for a first offence and $500 for a fourth and subsequent offence.
A previous mask ordinance drafted in the spring was rescinded before the council had an opportunity to discuss it in public.
As of Saturday, 562,985 people in the state have tested positive for coronavirus since the start of the pandemic. Additionally, 166 more deaths were reported Saturday. That brings the statewide death toll to 10,670.
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, the IDPH director, noted during Friday’s COVID-19 state briefing that due to a data reporting issue there was a delay in deaths reported that day. According to a news release, 66 of the deaths “that occurred yesterday are being reported with today’s total.”
Meanwhile, Pritzker announced Friday he was extending a host of coronavirus-related executive orders for another 30 days, including an extension of a moratorium on evictions.
The state also updated the data that it posts related to contact tracing, which involves reaching out to people diagnosed with COVID-19, urging them to isolate and asking them where they’ve been and whom they’ve seen during the two weeks prior to their positive test so those people can be asked to quarantine.
The data — covering the period from Aug. 1 to Nov. 7 — shows that the state is short of its goal of launching contact tracing for 90% of cases, although some regions came very close. Others appear nowhere near that target. For example, in Region 4 in far southern Illinois, tracers reached out to 89% of sick people, while in Region 10, which is suburban Cook County, the figure was 17%, according to the state.
The Chicago Tribune contributed to this report.
COVID-19 myths and misconceptions
Coronavirus case increases
Experts say the rise in COVID-19 cases is not due to increased testing. The increase in percent positive tests shows that the jump in cases is due to increased community spread and contraction of the virus through close interactions.
The Coulee COVID-19 Collaborative, a partnership of the La Crosse County, Wisconsin, Health Department, Mayo Clinic Health System - La Crosse, and Gundersen Health System, notes that while cases were highest among the college age demographic in late summer, the middle-aged sector is now being hit hard, due in large part to gatherings.
Quarantine vs. isolation
While often used interchangeably, quarantine and isolation are different, with those exposed but not positive for the virus adhering to the guidelines of the former and those with symptoms or confirmed cases following the rules of the latter.
Quarantine is recommended for individuals who are determined to have been close contacts with someone who has the virus. A close contact, says Fitzgerald, is someone who was within six feet of an infected person for several or more continuous minutes, regardless of whether masks were worn, though that decreases the chances of spread.
Quarantine guidelines
Quarantine should be followed for 14 days from date of contact with an infected person or household member. A negative test, Fitzgerald notes, is not a free pass to discontinue quarantine, as it is possible to test positive a few days later as the virus can take multiple days to manifest.
“People deemed to have positive exposure want to get tested so they can continue going out, but a negative test doesn’t mean you can resume (leaving the home) ...,” says Fitzgerald. “People who are exposed want to get back to work but there’s really no way around (quarantine).”
Those infected should begin isolation the day of symptom onset or receipt of positive test result, and remain in isolation for 10 days from that date.
Fitzgerald notes it seems “counterintuitive” that infected individuals spend less time in isolation than those exposed but not necessarily positive spend in quarantine, but CDC data indicates “that persons with mild to moderate COVID-19 remain infectious no longer than 10 days after symptom onset.”
However, individuals with severe to critical cases of the virus can remain infectious up to 20 days after symptom onset, so ceasing isolation after 10 days is dependent on if the person has been fever-free for at least 24 hours, without the use of fever reducing medications, and all other symptoms are absent.
Fitzgerald adds that those who test positive but are asymptomatic are not exempt from isolation. “People with a positive PCR test but are asymptomatic can find it hard to believe they have the virus,” but PCR test are very rarely inaccurate, he said.
Herd immunity
Herd immunity, which occurs when the majority of the population becomes immune to the virus, thus reducing spread and protecting the population at large, is not a realistic plan for stopping the transmission of COVID-19, experts say. Currently, it is unknown if contracting the virus gives you immunity, and even if patients do prove to become immune following infection, achieving herd immunity would be to the detriment of millions of lives lost.
It is estimated 70% of the U.S. population — over 200 million people — would need to have the virus and recover in order to stop the pandemic. This would overwhelm the healthcare system, result in millions of fatalities and have severe, long term consequences on the health and function of communities.
COVID-19 deaths
Rumors have been swirling that the death toll of the coronavirus has been exaggerated. The myth, Mayo experts say, was born from a data table from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which showed the majority of people who died of COVID-19 had multiple causes listed on their death certificates. This caused people to question whether the deaths were actually the result of a preexisting condition.
Health experts note that while those of older age or with serious health problems are more prone to severe cases of the coronavirus, the vast majority could have lived significantly longer had they not been infected.
Age and case severity
The elderly are especially susceptible to severe symptoms of COVID-19, but people of all ages can have cases serious enough to require hospitalization or even result in death. People of all age brackets and demographics are susceptible to the virus and related hospitalizations, and regardless of age, heart or lung conditions, immune deficiencies and obesity can increase the risk of a severe case.
Most children with COVID-19 have mild symptoms or are asymptomatic, but some have required intensive care or ventilation for the virus. Though rare, children have died from COVID-19.
Long lines
Taking antibiotics will not kill the coronavirus, as it is a virus rather than a bacteria. Individuals undergoing hospitalization for COVID-19 only receive antibiotics if they are simultaneously suffering from a bacterial infection of some kind.
COVID vs. flu
Social media is rife with assertions from the public that the coronavirus is no worse than the flu. While both are contagious respiratory diseases and have many of the same symptoms, the viruses manifest differently, with COVID-19 believed to be more contagious and more deadly than influenza.
While COVID-19 symptoms can take up to 14 days post exposure to surface, flu symptoms are usually apparent within four days. The health consequences of COVID-19 are generally worse than flu, including lung injury, development of blood clots and, for children, the onset of multisystem inflammatory syndrome.
According to a recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, patients hospitalized with COVID-19 were five times more likely to die than those with the flu, and COVID-19 patients were at higher risk than flu patients for 17 types of serious health complications, including pneumonia.
Currently, there is no approved and readily available vaccine for COVID-19, though early analysis of the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine trial shows promise. The flu shot is recommended for all individuals.
Face masks
Despite pleas from health officials, some people continue to question the efficacy of a face covering, feel the requirement infringes on their rights, or both. Masks, especially fabric versions, were not recommended at the start of the pandemic, but for months have been designated one of the three main viral spread prevention tactics, along with social distancing and hand washing.
As the virus is caused by respiratory droplets, released through talking, sneezing and coughing, a mask provides a barrier to protect both the wearer and those around them from becoming exposed to those droplets, which can enter through the mouth, nose and eyes.
