The McDonough County Health Department (MCHD) is announcing an outbreak as well as public exposures to COVID-19 at Earl’s Place/Bowsers in Bushnell, IL on Thursday, 10/08/20 and Saturday, 10/10/20. The McDonough County Health Department is working with this business to provide guidance and to mitigate this situation. The owner of Earl’s Place/Bowsers has taken many actions to slow the spread of the virus, including cleaning and disinfection of their facility, temporarily closing the facility and cancelling the upcoming Halloween party. Individuals who visited this facility on one or both of these dates should monitor for symptoms and seek testing, especially if/when symptoms develop. Free COVID-19 testing through the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) will be available in Bushnell at the Bushnell-Prairie City High School located at 845 Walnut Street on Wednesday, October 21, 2020 from 9am to 5pm.
An updated list of symptoms reported among patients with COVID-19 includes mild to severe respiratory illness with fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of sense of taste and/or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea. Please remain vigilant about keeping germs from spreading by covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands with soap and warm water, and staying home when sick. If experiencing unmanageable symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, call your primary healthcare provider or McDonough District Hospital’s nurse hotline at (309) 836-1715. The hotline’s hours are 8 a.m.- 4 p.m. Monday-Friday, and 9 a.m.- 1 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.
On 10/16/20, IDPH reported McDonough County to be at warning level for COVID-19, meaning 2 or more COVID-19 risk indicators have been exceeded. The metrics that McDonough County has exceeded for the week of 10/4/20-10/10/20 include:
- New cases per 100,000 people: more than 50 new cases per 100,000 people in the county.
McDonough County had 184 new cases per 100,000 people. - Weekly test positivity: the 7-day test positivity rate rises above 8%. McDonough County’s test
positivity was 8.7%. - Tests performed: indicates if more testing is needed in the county (testing is considered sufficient
when test positivity is less than or equal to 8%). McDonough County had 597 weekly tests.
Please use this data to make informed decisions about gatherings and activities, and actions you can take to slow the spread of the virus in our community. Refer to the IDPH website for weekly metric updates:
https://www.dph.illinois.gov/countymetrics?county=McDonough
Data is provisional and subject to change. Data source: Illinois National Electronic Disease Surveillance System
***Report Courtesy of the McDonough County Health Department***
