Elmhurst Virus Caseload Up By Third Since Late July

ELMHURST, IL — Elmhurst saw a 6 percent increase in coronavirus cases in the last week. As of Sunday, the caseload numbered 657, up from 621 a week before, according to the DuPage County Public Health Department. The number of cases is up by nearly a third since late July.

As of Sunday, Elmhurst had seen 44 coronavirus-related deaths so far, according to the health department. That number has remained the same for weeks.

Nursing homes are often hotbeds for the coronavirus, but those numbers have not increased in weeks. In Elmhurst, The Grove of Elmhurst reported 97 cases as of Friday, the same as it has been for a while, according to the state Department of Public Health. It was followed by 42 at Artis Senior Living and 17 at Lexington of Elmhurst. The total coronavirus deaths are 20 at Artis, 12 at Lexington and 13 at The Grove. Artis' outbreak was early in the crisis and the home has seen no effects in months, according to Artis.

The case numbers at nursing homes include employees, who may live elsewhere and thus excluded from Elmhurst's overall number.

Here's a look at the coronavirus numbers in Elmhurst:

In DuPage County, Addison has the highest number of cases with 1,085, which works out to 29.7 per thousand. It is followed by West Chicago, with 1,026 cases, or 38.3 per thousand. Despite the high caseloads, both towns have seen relatively few deaths — 9 in Addison and 12 in West Chicago.

As of Sunday, Elmhurst had 14 coronavirus cases per thousand people, better than its neighbors. The figure compares to 11.7 in Darien, 12.6 in Western Springs, 12.7 in La Grange Park, 14.6 in Clarendon Hills, 15.8 in DuPage County, 17.5 in Hinsdale, 19.5 in Burr Ridge, 19.9 in La Grange (including unincorporated La Grange Highlands) and 20.4 in suburban Cook County.

As of Sunday, Illinois' coronavirus case count increased to 233,355, up 6 percent from a week earlier. The coronavirus has claimed the lives of 8,019 state residents.

Nationally, 5.9 million people have caught the virus, up 1 percent from the week before. A total of 182,149 people have died from the virus in the United States.

IL Contradicts CDC Testing Guidance As State Sees 1,707 New Cases— Don't miss updates in Elmhurst as they are announced — Sign up for Patch news alerts and newsletters.

Meanwhile, Elmhurst Hospital's coronavirus caseload was five as of Monday, up one from a week earlier. In the early weeks of the pandemic, the number hovered around 60.

The number of deaths from the coronavirus at the hospital so far is 83, one more than a week earlier.

Since March 24, 513 patients have been discharged from Elmhurst Hospital following treatment for confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to the hospital. Elmhurst Hospital's patient base covers an area far greater than Elmhurst itself.