Illinois public health officials on Sunday confirmed an additional 646 cases of the novel coronavirus with 15 deaths.
The latest figures from the Illinois Department of Public Health showed doctors administered nearly 24,000 tests in the past 24 hours.
State officials have said Illinois has been progressing faster than expected in meeting health metrics tied to reopening. This past Friday, Illinois let restaurants reopen indoor dining with limited capacity and allowed other businesses to reopen with restrictions.
Overall, there have been over 141,700 total confirmed cases in the state since the start of the pandemic and over 6,800 deaths. More than 1.5 million tests have been administered.
On Friday, the state moved into its fourth of five phases as part of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s “Restore Illinois.” In addition to the restaurant changes, people in the state could go to the movies and work out at gyms, among other activities.
Officials have warned, however, that they could reimpose restrictions if coronaviruses cases or hospitalization rates spike, the Chicago Tribune reported.
For most people, the coronavirus has caused mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But, for others, especially older people and the infirm, it could trigger severe symptoms and turn deadly.
