Governor J.B. Pritzker said the state has not reached its goal of 10,000 tests per day as officials announced Illinois has surpassed 15,000 cases, including 462 deaths.
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) said the state’s COVID-19 total has reached 15,078 cases and 462 deaths. The number of people tested so far is at 75,066, data shows.
Pritzker said that the state wants to be able to test at least 10,000 people a day. The state currently can only test about 6,000-a-day.
Pritzker added that the state has obtained five RNA extractors to help speed up the test process, however, the results from the machines has not been reliable.
The state will not be using them until the issues are resolved.
IDPH Director Ngozi Ezike said that while the daily number of COVID-19 cases has been increasing, the rate of growth is slowing.
“We’re not seeing the exponential growth we were seeing before. But even as there may be some glimmers of hope, I say that physical distancing has to, must continue to be the way we reduce the spread of this virus. Please stay home,” she said.
Ezike said that a second survey was sent out to patients who tested positive for coronavirus in Illinois. Among the respondents, 43% of the cases said they have recovered.
Pritzker also said on Wednesday that the CDC has determined that someone who has recovered from COVID-19 is very likely to be immune from getting it again unless it mutates.
On Tuesday, Pritzker offered his gratitude to California, which sent Illinois 100 ventilators overnight. “It is truly incredible to work with elected officials across the nation who are providing true leadership.”
Illinois’ stay-at-home order remains in effect through April 30.