COVID-19 Now 3rd Leading Cause Of Death In Illinois: Pritzker

ILLINOIS — Reporting another 140 coronavirus deaths in Illinois — bringing the death toll to more than 11,000 — Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday said COVID-19 is now the third leading cause of death in the state, after heart disease and cancer.

Between March and October, "it took more lives than the next two highest causes — strokes and accidents — combined," he said, repeating the grim prediction from health officials that, unchecked, the coronavirus could cause another 17,000 to 45,000 deaths between now and March 2021. That's four to five times the death rate of the spring wave of coronavirus.

"We can't let that happen," he said.

Pritzker and Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike also shared statistics on how surging COVID-19 cases have worsened across the state.

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In August, Illinois was averaging 14 coronavirus deaths per day. "Today, that number is 83," Pritzker said, adding that more than 1,000 Illinoisans have died in the last two weeks alone.

"Another 140 sets of families and friends are searching for a way to grieve in this terrible trap," he said. "And the same disease that stole their loved one’s life from them now won’t allow them to gather to grieve. Please know that the good people of Illinois grieve with you."

The death rate in rural areas is also twice that of metro areas, Pritzker said.

Meanwhile, Pritzker called upon Illinois residents to take precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus — if not for themselves, then for overburdened health care workers.

As of Tuesday night, there were 5,953 COVID-19 patients in Illinois hospitals, with 1,146 people in the ICU and 547 on ventilators.

"That’s a problem for all of us. It’s not just COVID-19 patients who need hospital beds and the expert care of doctors and nurses," Pritzker said, adding that those with cancer, people injured in car accidents and those who have suffered heart attacks and strokes are among the non-COVID patients who need hospital beds too.

Pritzker hearkened back to last spring, when health care workers were praised as heroes, greeted with applause during shift changes and treated to free food.

"Well, hospital leaders tell me that’s all come to a grinding halt," he said. "Now our health workers are experiencing verbal assaults by people who come to the hospital suffering from COVID-19."

Pritzker pointed the finger at President Donald Trump, blaming the "divisive and misleading rhetoric of the outgoing president of the United States" that he said "has implanted a false narrative" in people's minds.

These days, some patients are "screaming at hospital workers how the disease is a hoax or a hospital profit scheme," the governor said. "It’s beyond tragic."

Pritzker urged residents, "If you know a hospital or health care worker, find a way to do something special for them … or just say thank you."

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Ezike also challenged the notion that only the elderly or those with underlying health conditions are at risk from the coronavirus.

"It is true that people who are older and people who have comorbidities are at higher risk," she said. But of the 140 new deaths since Tuesday, two people were in their 30s, three were in their 40s, and nine were in their 50s.

"I believe that the death of a 90-year-old or a 50-year-old or a 20-year-old all matter," Ezike said.