Gov. J.B. Pritzker says that recent coronavirus numbers lead cause for concern and a need to take “concerted action” to prevent Chicago from returning to a hotspot status.
Pritzkers concern was revealed while hosting a coronavirus press briefing on August 12, 2020. There, the governor responded to questions about the recent reports that indicate Chicago as one of the major cities seeing a spike in COVID cases if precautions aren’t taken.
“You’ve seen me and heard me say that this is a make or break moment for Illinois and the city of Chicago. We’re doing everything we can in this process,” he told reporters.
During the briefing, Pritzker was questioned about the PolicyLab’s published models. The models were published in the Daily Beast, [predicting that three major cities could become coronavirus hotspots. The three cities included Boston, Chicago, and Baltimore.
The models detailed the few reasons behind why these cities can expect such high COVID rates. With the models stating that Chicago metro stations do not practice social distancing at the rate needed to prevent the increase in coronavirus cases.
Despite Chicago not seeing the drastic increase in coronavirus cases like other cities, Pritzker still confirms that in order to prevent more cases the city would need to keep ahead of the curve to avoid fresh outbreaks in the area.
As Illinois 7 day positivity rate hovers over 4.1%, “with numerous seeing an increase in cases and positivity rates,” it has caught the attention of health officials that push the individual efforts of social distancing.
Written by: Brielle R. Buford
Sources
nbs Chicago: Chicago, Illinois Facing a ‘Make or Break’ Moment to Avoid New Coronavirus Outbreaks: Pritzker
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Illinois Public Radio’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
