Illinois saw a jump in new coronavirus cases Thursday, reporting nearly 900 new infections and more than 40 additional fatalities as the state set a testing record one day before entering phase four of its reopening plan.
According to state health officials, the positivity rate on Thursday sat at 3 percent. Earlier this week, that rate had been at 2 percent, but with a slight increase in positive tests over the last two days, the number moved back up.
In the last 24 hours, the state saw 894 new cases and 41 deaths related to COVID-19.
In all, 139,434 confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported in Illinois, along with 6,810 deaths.
Illinois laboratories reported 31,686 test specimens were received Thursday, setting a new record for single-day test results. A total of 1,460,527 tests have been conducted statewide since the pandemic began.
The numbers come one day before the state enters phase four of its reopening plan, bringing back several businesses and industries and increasing capacity restrictions for others.
