IDPH reports 4,729 new coronavirus cases, 17 additional deaths

Posted on October 26, 2020
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. (Twitter/IDPH)

 

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – The state’s public health director has made national news.

Why did Dr. Ngozi Ezike cry last week?

“I don’t know,” Ezike said with a laugh. “I just got overwhelmed. The culmination of a lot of months of frustration and, maybe, some fear and some discouragement at the route and the road that we have taken, despite some opportunities and chances to do better.”

Ezike says she heard from people internationally who said they are equally frustrated. And, she added, who knows how many people will be exposed tomorrow?

The state Monday reported 4,729 new coronavirus cases and seventeen newly reported deaths. The totals are 378,985 cases and 9,522 dead in Illinois since the pandemic began.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected]

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