COVID-19 Case-by-Case Update

Photo courtesy to the CDC

NORMAL, Ill.- McLean County Health Department is reporting 71 new cases of COVID-19 today, bringing the total to 1838 cases.

Currently, 803 individuals are isolating at home.  Three individuals are hospitalized, with 1 of those currently in the Intensive Care Unit. There are 1016 individuals that have been released from isolation and are considered recovered.

There have been 16 COVID-related deaths in McLean County.

Over 46,700 tests have been resulted for a cumulative positivity rate of 3.8%. The rolling 7-day positivity continues to increase and is at 10.7% through Aug. 31, 2020.

The McLean County Health Department is working with a new contact tracing software from the IDPH.

“We have limited data to report again today, but we will continue working with IDPH to be able to provide more detailed updates in the future,” said Health Department Administrator Jessica McKnight.

Contact tracing for the COVID-19 response means public health staff at local health departments are reaching out to the contacts of confirmed positive COVID-19 patients to help protect others who have been potentially exposed to the virus. The goal is to slow the spread of COVID-19. “By providing as much information as you can to the Contact Tracer, you will help keep the community safe and healthy,” said McKnight.

The McLean County Health Department cautions that there is a new phone scam where callers are posing as COVID-19 contact tracers try to pry credit card or bank account information from unsuspecting victims.

There are multiple contact tracers working at the McLean County Health Department, and there is not just one phone number they will be calling from.

“We continue to caution individuals about answering phone calls from numbers they do not recognize.  If you do not answer the call from the McLean County Health Department tracers, we will always  leave  message just letting you know that public health is trying to get in touch with you, and it would be very helpful for us if you would call that number right back,” said McKnight. “Contact tracers are often working seven days a week, so don’t be alarmed if you get a call on a weekend.”

Contact Tracers will never ask you for your social security number, bank information, or immigration status. They are concerned with what’s relevant for identifying who might have potentially been exposed to the virus.  They may confirm your name and date of birth, and email address. They will ask about your occupation and for the names and contact information of friends or individuals that you’ve been in close contact with. The reason for this is they want to be able to make sure people understand when they’ve had an exposure to COVID-19.

The Contact Tracing Team will not share your identify with any contacts you identify as possibly exposed. “We do encourage you to reach out to people you were around during the contagious period, if you are comfortable doing so,” said McKnight.