Now that 11 of 12 Illinois' health care regions have triggered increased mitigations as a result of rising positivity rates and coronavirus case numbers, could the state see another stay-at-home order?
It's unlikely, according to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has cited the state's success in mitigation strategies.
Pritzker previously said the state plans to continue with implementing restrictions in specific locations that see increased positivity rates.
Under the current plan, regions that exceed an 8% positivity rate for three consecutive days begin to see added restrictions, such as the suspension of indoor dining and bar service. If numbers remain too high after a two-week period, the state can either choose to allow those restrictions to remain in place, or can implement additional rules.
On Friday, one of the final two regions without heightened restrictions triggered enhanced mitigations.
As of 12:01 a.m. Monday, Region 6 in East-Central Illinois will be placed under Tier 1 mitigations and see the suspension of indoor dining, gathering limitations and more as the positivity rate in the area continues to rise.
The region on Friday hit a three-day positivity rate of 8.6%.
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Currently, eight regions are under mitigations, and Region 2 remains the only one of 11 Illinois' health care regions without heightened restrictions.
As a result of rising positivity rates, Region 1 is under Tier 2 mitigations, which include further limits on indoor dining, the reduction of elective surgeries, greater limits on gatherings and the suspension of organized indoor recreational activities.
Additional mitigations take effect in a particular region if the area sees:
- Sustained increase in 7-day rolling average (7 out of 10 days) in the positivity rate and one of the following severity indicators:
- Sustained 7-day increase in hospital admissions for a COVID-19 like illness
- Reduction in hospital capacity threatening surge capabilities (ICU capacity or medical/surgical beds < 20%)
- OR three consecutive days averaging ≥ 8% positivity rate
The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday reported the state's highest number of daily coronavirus cases and tests of the entire coronavirus pandemic so far with nearly 7,000 cases and more than 95,000 tests.
The state’s seven-day positivity rate, on a steady rise for nearly all of October, increased from 6.9% to 7.3% Friday, marking the highest it has been since at least early June.
