CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Twelve prisoners at Stateville Correctional Center have been hospitalized for COVID-19, with some of the men requiring ventilators to breathe, and one inmate has died, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced Monday.
In addition, there are 77 more prisoners with symptoms who are isolated at the facility in southwest suburban Crest Hill; 11 staff are also being isolated.
Health Department Director Ngozi Ezike said prisons are environments where it is hard to contain an infection, because of the close proximity of inmates. Stateville, she noted, is home to some of the state's oldest inmates.
The announcement about the prison outbreak came as the Pritkzer Administration released the latest numbers and updates associated with the novel coronavirus pandemic. The state health department announced there were 461 new cases COVID-19, taking the Illinois total to 5,057 cases.
Eight new deaths are also being reported, including the Stateville Correctional Center inmate. That takes the state's fatality total to 73 deaths.
In other udpates Monday, Gov. Pritzker said:
-McCormick Place continues to be set up as a medical center that, if needed, would be reserved for "non acute" COVID-19 patients. He said hospitals are still the first line of defense in fighting the disease, and officials would seek to use beds in underutilized hospitals. Efforts are also underway to reopen closed medical facilities in Blue Island and Elgin.
-The federal government continues to under-deliver on its promises to provide PPE -- personal protective equipment -- that doctors and nurses need as they treat patients.
"It's not a luxury that they should have to ration," Pritzker said.
Earlier Monday, the city of Chicago announced plans to educate public school students through "remote learning" plans. They will be rolled out and operational by mid-April.
Illinois residents are under a stay-at-home order to help stem the spread of COVID-19, which can be fatal to the elderly and people with underlying health problems. Only "essential" businesses are allowed to operate, and schools have been closed temporarily.
