COVID-19: Except Cicero, New Cases Appear to Be Tapering in Area

Chicago Heights Tops 500 Cases

Park Forest, IL-(ENEWSPF)- With the exception of Cicero, the number of new COVID-19 cases in the 30 towns we survey appears to be tapering — and that is welcome news. Cicero, Illinois, still leads Cook County in the number of cases of COVID-19, now with 2757 known infections and a rate of 3286.49 per 100,000. That’s a rise of almost 300 cases since we last surveyed on May 25.

Park Forest now has 474 known cases of the disease with a rate of 2211.96 per 100,000 people, still the second-highest rate of the towns we survey but now the tenth highest rate in all of Cook County. On May 25 Park Forest was the ninth highest rate per 100k.

According to the state of Illinois, Ludeman Center in Park Forest has 219 residents who tested positive for COVID-19. That figure is up from 204 when we last tallied figures on May 25, 2020. According to Parents & Friends of Ludeman Center, and 196 tested negative, with 0 pending results.

A total of 129 staff members at Ludeman have tested positive. However, of these, 108 have recovered and returned to work. 242 staff members negative and were never infected.

Are you experiencing mental health issues related to COVID-19? Text “TALK” or “HABLAR” to 552020 to receive support from a counselor in your local community.

As of June 5, 11 of 38 occupied Ludeman Homes were being supported in droplet isolation. This refers to precautions healthcare workers, visitors, and staff need to take “before going into or leaving a patient’s room.”

“Droplet precautions are for patients who have germs that can spread when they cough or sneeze.” (MyHealth.Alberta.CA)

Ludeman Center employs 905 people and has 341 residents, according to the current census. All have been tested, some twice, according to Parents & Friends. Staff continues to undergo wellness checks before reporting to their respective assignments, the group Parents & Friends reports.

Eighteen (18) people from Park Forest have died of COVID-19 related issues according to the Cook County Medical Examiner‘s office. That number has not changed since our last tally on May 25.

That is more good news.

The number of Deaths by Day also appears to be lessening, with only eight reported on June 6.

A total of 2878 people in Park Forest have been tested with an overall positive test percentage of 16.46%, down from 18.71% when we last surveyed.

The Will County Health Department reports 42 cases of COVID-19 in the Will County section of Park Forest as of June 4, 2020.

As of this writing, Chicago Heights has 536 confirmed cases and a rate of 1770.38 per 100k. That represents an increase of 63 cases since we last surveyed. Steger has 72 cases, Flossmoor 78, Richton Park 211, Olympia Fields has 58, Sauk Village 108, Glenwood 171, Tinley Park 306, and South Chicago Heights has 77.

Harvey has 455 cases, Country Club Hills has 307 cases, Orland Park 465, Lynwood 116, Lansing 376, Homewood 275, South Holland 383, Markham 209, and Crete 145. Ford Heights now has 32 cases, and Calumet City has 568 and a rate of 1533.39 per 100,000 people.

Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 126,890 cases, including 5,864 deaths, in 101 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years.  Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 21,155 specimens for a total of 1,022,074.

The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from May 30–June 5 is 5.5%.

As of June 6, 2020, there are a total of 31,690 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in suburban Cook County and 1,425 deaths; 171 cases are in congregate settings, such as long term care facilities or nursing homes, are reporting one or more confirmed cases. 31 cases are in other settings, such as workplaces or large gatherings, with confirmed outbreaks; with a total of 290 outbreak-associated cases.

The data from Cook County includes all cases under the jurisdiction of the Cook County Department of Public Health (excludes Chicago, Evanston, Oak Park, Skokie, and Stickney Township). All numbers are provisional and subject to change.

As of this writing, Will County now reports 5,858 confirmed cases and 285 deaths.

We must note: Other countries have fewer cases of COVID-19, far lower rates per 100k. The higher numbers are not an inevitability of testing. Testing alone is not the determining factor in higher numbers.

We leave further interpretation of the data up to our astute readers.

Deceased from COVID-19

The Cook County Medical Examiner reports 3,440 total COVID-19 related deaths since March 16, 2020, as of May 25, 2020.

As noted above, Park Forest has lost 18 people from COVID-19.

The number of deceased from Chicago Heights is now 30, five more people than when we last tallied on May 25. Cicero lost 69, Richton Park 12, Matteson 22, and Country Club Hills 27. The number of deaths in Steger (Cook County) is 4, unchanged since we last tallied. Crestwood has now lost 13, and Homewood has now lost 30.

The City of Chicago has lost 2,200 people to COVID-19.

The state of Illinois reports an overall recovery rate of 92%. According to the IDPH, the recovery rate is calculated as the recovered cases divided by the sum of recovered cases and deceased cases. Recovered cases are defined as persons “with an initial positive specimen collection date” who after more than 42 days “have not expired,” according to the IDPH.

Current COVID-19 Cases for 30 South Suburban Towns

The following chart will auto-update as we update our Google spreadsheet:

Overall for the State of Illinois

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced 975 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 72 additional confirmed deaths.

• Boone County: 1 male 70s
• Champaign County: 1 male 40s
• Cook County: 1 teen, 3 males 40s, 2 males 50s, 1 female 60s, 5 males 60s, 3 females 70s, 5 males 70s, 3 females 80s, 5 males 80s, 6 females 90s, 1 male 90s
• DeKalb County: 1 female 80s
• DuPage County: 1 male 60s, 2 females 70s, 2 males 70s, 1 male 80s
• Jackson County: 1 female 90s
• Kane County: 1 male 50s, 2 males 60s, 1 female 80s
• Lake County: 1 male 60s, 2 females 70s, 2 females 80s, 3 females 90s, 1 male 90s
• Macon County: 1male 70s
• McHenry County: 1 female 50s, 1 male 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
• Sangamon County: 1 female 70s, 1 male 80s
• St. Clair County: 1 male 70s
• Tazewell County: 1 female 70s
• Will County: 1 female 80s
• Winnebago County: 1 female 60s, 1 male 80s, 2 females 90s

Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 126,890 cases, including 5,864 deaths, in 101 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years.  Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 21,155 specimens for a total of 1,022,074. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from May 30–June 5 is 5.5%.

*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in real-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered.  Information for a death previously reported has changed, therefore, today’s numbers have been adjusted.  For health questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email [email protected].   More information about COVID-19 can be found on the IDPH website at http://www.dph.illinois.gov/covid19.

About the Elisabeth Ludeman Center

As of June 6, the Illinois Department of Human Services reports a current census of 343 residents at Ludeman Center. Of these:

• The average age is 53.2 years (22 – 77);
• 74% of the residents are severe and profound mentally, intellectually, and physically disabled.
• 48% are non-verbal, using sign language or gestures to communicate;
• 62% have a behavior intervention program, often requiring higher
  levels of staff supervision;
• 62% receive psychotropic medications.

According to the IDHS:

The Elisabeth Ludeman Center occupies 60 acres in Park Forest at the southwest corner of Orchard Drive and North Street.

The Center is divided into three (3) residential units comprised of 13-14 homes. Each unit has a centrally located Neighborhood House which has offices for the Unit Director, Social Worker, Unit Physician, Nursing Personnel, Qualified Intellectual Disabilities Professionals, (QIDP’s), Residential Services Supervisors and clerical personnel. The Ludeman Center also serves as an admission center for individuals having significant adaptive issues in the community-based setting. The Interdisciplinary teams’ main priority is to stabilize and ensure a successful transition back into the community.

Each of the 40 ranch-style homes has a kitchen, dining/living room area, utility room which contains a washer and dryer, two full and one half bathrooms, and five bedrooms.

Approximately half of the people who currently reside at the Ludeman Center attend vocational training programs at community training sites or workshops. The remainder of the people are served in on-campus day training programs. Currently, several individuals are working in a food service program, housekeeping program, horticulture program (vegetable garden and greenhouse flowers) and in the Center-wide recycling program.

Finally, the Ludeman Center has opened its doors and shared space/services with the Illinois Department Of Transportation’s District 1 South DBE Resource Center; as well as the Office of the Inspector General, Bureau of Civil Affairs, Bureau of Quality Management, and SODC Operations.

*Why Rate Per 100,000?

We found a clear explanation for viewing the rate of infections per 100,000 comes from Indiana University at Bloomington: “There may or may not be 100,000 residents in the county under review, but multiplying the result by 100,000 makes that rate comparable with counties with more than 100,000 or less than 100,000.”

“It is customary to use rates per 100,000 population for deaths and rates per 1,000 population for live births,” our source at Indiana University says.

So, none of the cities, towns, and villages we survey have 100,000 residents, but by using the rate per 100,000, we are able to compare apples to apples, so to speak, as if every town did have 100,000 residents.

eNews Park Forest will continue to track the effects the COVID-19 pandemic has on our region.

This article was temporarily available for free as part of our public service during the COVID-19.