McLean County Times

A high-ranking McLean County health official is anticipating an increase in COVID-19 cases as more people participate in outdoor activities as the weather gets warmer.  

Health Department Administrator Jessica McKnight's comments came earlier this month when she projected that in two-weeks time McLean County might start seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases, WGLT.org reported on June 1 — linking possible increases to large gatherings, protests for racial equality and other situations people are closer together. 

"You don't always know the person next to you personally,” McKnight told WGLT. “These are the kinds of incidents where if we identify a case from one of these events we may need to let the public know if you were at this gathering we would ask you to monitor for symptoms and be on the lookout for that." 

As of June 18, the Illinois Department of Health reported 246 positive tests in McLean with 13 deaths. When WGLT published its article, 220 COVID-19 cases were reported. 

“In two weeks or so, we will likely see an increase in our cases,” McKnight said, WGLT reported. “People are getting more active, so we are anticipating to see more cases.”

Though community members continue to test positive for the coronavirus, McKnight said that the number of tests overall is declining — particularly at the Interstate Center in Bloomington, one of the main evaluation sites. 

“We’re in that time of year where we don’t see as many additional viruses that have COVID-like symptoms, so we may not be seeing as high a demand of people that are exhibiting those symptoms,” McKnight said. “But can we interpret that COVID is gone? Absolutely not.”

Businesses have begun to reopen as phase 3 of Gov. JB Pritzker’s Restore Illinois began on May 29, WGLT reported. 

There were 26 active cases of coronavirus in McLean County, four of which are hospitalized residents at the time of the WGLT report.