SPRINGFIELD (WSIL) -- Illinois has conducted more than five million COVID-19 tests since the start of the pandemic.
The state surpassed the five million mark on Saturday, making it one of the first states in the U.S. to do so, according to a release from Governor JB Pritzker's office.
“In a pandemic, widely available testing and faster results mean our people are safer,� said Governor Pritzker. “Here in Illinois, we’ve steadily added new in-state commercial labs and greater hospital and university lab capacity utilization to get to an average of more than 50,000 tests per day. We do three and a half times the testing the average state does. And we’re one of the fastest states in delivering tests back to our residents. I intend for Illinois to remain a leader in the fight against COVID-19, in part by making sure we are on the leading edge of technology and its proliferation throughout the state.�
“Testing is a critical step in reducing the spread of the virus, because a positive test result begins the contact tracing process, which identifies who was exposed and needs to be quarantined to prevent further spread,� said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. “Currently IDPH has 11 community-based testing sites around the state, as well as mobile testing teams that are deployed each week to various locations throughout Illinois. Anyone can go there to get tested, or at any state testing site. You don’t have to have symptoms, or a doctor’s referral or order, and there is no cost to you for testing.�
Officials say Illinois has expanded its testing capacity to more than 52,000 COVID-19 tests a day on average. A one-day high of 74,000 tests was reported over the past weekend.
The state is also looking at new methods of testing, including more fast-acting antigen testing like Abbott's BinaxNOW and saliva testing like that developed at the University of Illinois.
On Monday, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 1,477 new cases of COVID-19, including seven additional confirmed deaths.
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 275,735 cases, including 8,457 deaths, in Illinois.
