ON JANUARY 24TH, STATE PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS BRIEFED THE PRESS ON ILLINOIS' FIRST CASE OF THE NEW CORONAVIRUS...A WOMAN WHO HAD JUST RETURNED TO CHICAGO FROM WUHAN, CHINA. IT WAS JUST THE SECOND CASE IN THE U-S. HER HUSBAND SOON BECAME INFECTED AS WELL, MARKING THE FIRST KNOW PERSON-TO-PERSON TRANSMISSION OF COVID-19 IN THE COUNTRY. BY MARCH 20TH, ILLINOIS HAD 585 CASES AND GOVERNOR J-B PRITZKER MADE A BIG ANNOUNCENT.

THE FIRST CASE IN ILLINOIS WAS ANNOUNCED ON JANUARY 24TH, A CHICAGO AREA WOMAN WHO HAD JUST RETURNED FROM WUHAN, CHINA. STATE PUBLIC HEALTH DIRECTOR DOCTOR NGOZI (en-gahzi) EZIKE (eh-zee-kay) SPOKE WITH THE MEDIA THAT DAY ABOUT THE NEW STRAIN OF CORONAVIRUS.

BY FEBRUARY 11TH, THE VIRUS OFFICIALLY HAD A NAME: COVID-19 AND ILLINOIS BECAME THE FIRST STATE TO DO IT'S OWN TESTING FOR THE VIRUS. CONCERNS GREW RAPIDLY IN MARCH AS NEW CASES INCREASED, WITH THE GOVERNOR ANNOUNCING THE CLOSURE OF SCHOOLS AND A STATEWIDE STAY AT HOME ORDER. IN EARLY APRIL, OFFICIALS SAID WEARING A MASK WAS A GOOD IDEA TO PREVENT TRANSMISSION AND ON MAY FIRST A MASK MANDATE WENT INTO EFFECT. CASES DROPPED OVER THE SUMMER AND SOME BUSINESSES WERE ALLOWED TO OPEN BACK UP UNDER THE GOVERNOR'S PHASE FOUR "RESTORE ILLINOIS" PLAN. NEW MITIGATIONS WERE APPLIED REGIONALLY AS THE TEST POSITIVITY RATE BEGAN TO INCREASE AGAIN IN THE FALL AND WINTER SCHOOL SPORTS LIKE BASKETBALL WERE PUT ON HOLD. TODAY, BARS AND RESTAURANTS REMAIN CLOSED TO INDOOR SERVICE, TOTAL CASES TOP 948 THOUSAND AND MORE THAN 16 THOUSAND PEOPLE IN ILLINOIS HAVE DIED.