LEE COUNTY — The Lee County Unified Command Team would like to thank our community for the overwhelming support for the heroes serving at the Jack Mabley Center. They continue to do great work.

There is one new positive case of COVID-19 in Lee County, a person in his or her 40’s.  This brings the Lee County total to 76. 19 people have fully recovered and have been lifted off isolation. The State of Illinois reported 3,239 new cases today bringing the total to 87,937. The death toll has risen to 3,928. 

The City of Dixon in partnership with LCIDA and Dixon Chamber of Commerce and Main Street have extended their small business stabilization grant for one month. This grant was created to help small businesses with their May rent or mortgage and utility bills. To date, the program has helped 72 small businesses in Lee County through $128,019 in local grant money. Those interested in applying for the grant can get an application at www.dixongov.com Applications can be submitted to heather.mccarter@discoverdixon.org  The second round of grants will begin to be awarded by the middle of next week. 

The City of Dixon would like to thank Palmyra Pub for their generous donation of lunch to City Hall staff.  The kind gesture was greatly appreciated. 

This will be the last narrative press release until Monday, unless there becomes significant information to share with our community. 

Current Testing Criteria:

The Illinois Department of Public Health has expanded testing guidelines.  The following people can be tested with or without symptoms. 

• Work in health care facility
• Work in correctional facilities, such as jails or prisons
• Serve as first responders, such as paramedics, emergency medical technicians, law enforcement officers, or firefighters
• Support critical infrastructure , such as workers in grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, gas stations, public utilities, factories, childcare and sanitation.

Other individuals may be tested if they have COVID-19 symptoms (cough, shortness of breath and fever) OR

have a risk factor, such as contact with someone confirmed to have COVID-19, a compromised immune system or a serious chronic medical condition.

What to do if you think you have COVID-19: (UPDATED INFORMATION)

During the current Corona Virus outbreak, individuals with symptoms SHOULD NOT GO to health care facilities such as hospitals, clinics, and urgent care centers without CALLING FIRST.  Instead, they can seek care by using one of the following options:

• Use the “KSB Care Anywhere” virtual care app (https://ksbhospital.zipnosis.com/) for a free 5 question screening in order to help differentiate your symptoms between the virus and other seasonal maladies. While a credit card is required for a more involved assessment, no charges will be applied if a COVID-19 testing referral is made.
• KSB is offering a Coronavirus HOTLINE, by which symptoms can be evaluated against federal screening guidelines, and if appropriate, a referral is made to their Drive-Thru Screening site. The screening site is available ONLY through the hotline and between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm on weekdays by calling 815-285-7777.
• Residents with a Primary Care Practitioner can also CALL their office for advice. Again, CALL FIRST before going to the office.

Residents can go to the following websites for additional information:

Go to KSB, IDPH, or CDC websites.  Lee County Health Department provides regular updates on its Facebook page.

• https://www.ksbhospital.com/coronavirus-outbreak-covid-19/
• http://dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/diseases-a-z-list/coronavirus
• https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
• For businesses: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/guidance-business-response.html
• Facebook: Lee County IL Health Departmen 

For general questions about COVID-19, call the IDPH hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or 211.