Chicago infant among deaths
Pritzker reports 465 new cases, issues warning to obey stay-at-home order
The death of an infant diagnosed with COVID-19 prompted another stern warning Saturday from Gov. J.B. Pritzker and public health officials about the importance of obeying the week-old stay-at-home order.
The child, whose exact age and medical history were not released, lived in Chicago and is believed to be the youngest person in the United States whose death has been linked to the coronavirus.
The infant’s death clearly shook Pritzker, as state officials confirmed 12 other deaths and 465 new cases. The death toll announced Saturday marks the state’s highest single-day total since it began tracking the virus on Jan. 21.
Illinois now has 3,491 total known cases and 47 deaths, according to official records.
“I know how difficult this news can be, especially about this very young child,” the governor said at his daily news conference. “Upon hearing it, I admit that I was immediately shaken. It’s appropriate for any of us to grieve today. It’s especially sorrowful for the family of this very small child for the years stolen from this infant. We should grieve. … We should grieve for a sense of normalcy we left behind just a few short weeks ago.”
A state employee also was among the deaths announced Saturday.
Others included eight people in Chicago;
a McHenry County man in his 50s; two Kane County men in their 70s; a Lake County woman in her 90s; and a Will County woman in her 90s.
The governor said the rising death toll should serve as a warning to those who flout his stay-at-home directive, which went into effect March 21 and essentially ordered people to isolate themselves unless they have a crucial reason to be in public.
“The vast, vast majority of people in Illinois are doing precisely what we asked them to do,” Pritzker said. “But it’s the others — the people who aren’t obeying the stay-at-home rule — who are putting everyone in danger. It doesn’t take that many people, frankly, to break the rules and cause danger to others.”
The infant’s death is particularly jarring because the available scientific evidence suggests the elderly are the most vulnerable to the novel coronavirus’ grasp. Indeed, more than 85% of deaths in Illinois involved people 60 years or older, and the very young have been widely reported to be the most resilient.
Nine of Chicago’s 12 deaths have involved people 60 or older, according the city’s public health department. There have been two deaths of patients between the ages of 18 and 59.
Children represent just 1.6% of Chicago’s confirmed cases. There have been no coronavirus-related hospitalizations involving anyone younger than 18, city health officials said.
“It is an outlier to have that death,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, head of the Chicago Department of Public Health. “But I recognize how concerning that will be for people in Chicago to hear that.”
The IDPH would not release any additional details about the infant, including whether the child had any underlying medical conditions. There have been no other confirmed coronavirus-linked cases in the world involving a child so young, director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said at the Saturday news conference.
“There has never before been a death associated with COVID-19 in an infant. A full investigation is underway to determine the cause of death,” Ezike said. “We must do everything we can to prevent the spread of this deadly virus. If not to protect ourselves, but to protect those around us.”
News of the child’s death comes as the governor confirmed plans to convert the sprawling McCormick Place convention center into Illinois’ first field hospital, capable of handling as many as 3,000 COVID-19 patients.
Pritzker declined to discuss the planned makeshift medical center in detail Saturday, saying only that the state is bracing for a possible surge in cases in the coming weeks. He said Illinois is in a stronger position in terms of hospital capacity and confirmed cases than parts of the New York City metropolitan area, which President Donald Trump said he is considering placing under a short-term quarantine order.
New York had reported 52,318 confirmed cases, with 728 deaths statewide, as of Saturday morning. In neighboring New Jersey, there were 8,825 reported cases, with 108 deaths.
“If we here in Illinois do what people should be doing, following the rules according to the stay-at-home order, then we should be able to bend the curve,” Pritzker said. “But we’re all deeply concerned about what’s happening in New York.”
To help blunt the virus’ spread, Pritzker has asked local grocery stores to remind shoppers about the importance of maintaining 6 feet of social distance through additional signage and frequent announcements over public-address systems. He also is urging markets to temporarily prohibit the use of reusable bags, and have more employees patrol the aisles in search of those not adhering to best practices.
The governor did little to hide his frustration Saturday with those who have disregarded his order this far into the worst global pandemic in a century — one that still has Chicago and the rest of the state firmly in its crosshairs.
“People are, I don’t know, they aren’t listening,” Pritzker said. “People need to do what’s right. And, right now, the fact that you’re bored? That you want to have a pick-up basketball game with your friends? This not time for it. People are going to die if you don’t obey the rules.”