Public Health – Page 6 – CU-CitizenAccess.org

Read more about the article The University Of Illinois Dials Back Statements About FDA Authorization For Its COVID-19 Test

Photo: Christine Herman/Illinois Newsroom

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign requires students and employees get tested regularly for COVID-19, using a saliva-based test developed by its own researchers.

The University Of Illinois Dials Back Statements About FDA Authorization For Its COVID-19 Test

Post author:Lee Gaines / Illinois Newsroom and Christine Herman / Illinois Newsroom
Post published:October 5, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Education Public Health

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s saliva-based COVID-19 test has never operated under emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, despite prior claims that it did, an FDA spokesperson tells Illinois Newsroom. So far, campus officials say the U of I has been contacted by 35 organizations, including other universities, expressing interest in adopting the campus’ Shield program, which involves testing, contact tracing and other mitigation measures.

University of Illinois

The logo for the University of Illinois's COVID-19 SHIELD saliva-based testing.

University of Illinois COVID-19 cases surge past official predictions

Post author:Raleigh Butler / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:September 11, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Education Public Health

University of Illinois officials reported 1,754 new cases from Aug. 15 when students started coming back to campus, through Sept. 8, although a team of researchers working directly for the university administration had projected only 500 to 700 cases by Thanksgiving.

Photos are being captured of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign student gatherings and parties as they return to campus. This gathering, located at Green Street Towers on August 21, 2020, was posted to Reddit, shaming students for ignoring city orders and not wearing masks amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Champaign-Urbana emergency orders fall short of researchers’ recommendations

Post author:Samantha Boyle / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:August 23, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Public Health

The cities of Champaign and Urbana both issued emergency orders intended to prevent a possible surge in COVID-19 cases as students return to campus for the fall semester. Illinois researchers Eric Jakobsson and Santiago Nunez-Corrales created a computer model that estimated that students will bring back nine times the viral load – or rate of disease – than of community members. In a letter to both city councils, they recommended the cities, all bars and restaurants return to having only curbside pick-up, delivery or drive through. They said without those measures there could be an additional 800 cases, 80 more hospitalizations and four more deaths.

Read more about the article Returning international students from countries with lower infection rates of COVID-19 than the U.S.

Pam Dempsey/CU-CitizenAccess

A tent and signs indicate a Covid-19 testing site at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's Alice Campbell Alumni Center on Friday, July 31, 2020. The University is conducting free saliva tests for faculty, staff and students with results typically known within 48 hours.

Returning international students from countries with lower infection rates of COVID-19 than the U.S.

Post author:Samantha Boyle / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:August 7, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Education Public Health

Most of the international students from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s 2019-2020 academic year are from countries with lower daily Covid-19 infection rates than the United States, according to a CU-CitizenAccess analysis. Last spring, 9,824 international students attended the University from more than 100 countries, according to university data.

Read more about the article Reports on “recovered” COVID-19 cases inconsistent and incomplete; Numbers elusive and may mislead on real medical impact of virus

Dylan Tiger

A Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting review of state health data found four primary categories of definitions for "recovered" COVID-19 patients. See below for an interactive version.

Reports on “recovered” COVID-19 cases inconsistent and incomplete; Numbers elusive and may mislead on real medical impact of virus

Post author:Dylan Tiger, Isaiah Baba / For CU-CitizenAccess, Daria Makhneva / For CU-CitizenAccess and Samantha Boyle / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:July 10, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Government Public Health

As Covid-19 surges again in the U.S., the high percentage of "recovered" cases might be cited as a sign that a vast majority of those infected quickly rid themselves of the virus. But the “recovered” statistics are incomplete, inconsistent and call into question the accuracy of any total number of recovered cases, according to a review of 50 state public health sites by CU-CitizenAccess.org.

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District

COVID-19 testing data shows high recovery rate, weekly increase in testing

Post author:Isaiah Baba / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:July 9, 2020
Post category:Public Health

By the end of June Champaign County had conducted more than 33,000 COVID-19 tests, according to data from the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District. A review of the data saw the number of daily tests increasing dramatically while showing that Champaign County has had a relatively low positive rate (2.5%) with 723 cases out of 29508 tests (May to June). It also showed a high “recovered” rate, but the term “recovered’ can be misleading. In Illinois, the definition of recovered means that an infected person has not died within 42 days of being diagnosed. The rate was 93 percent (May to June).

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District

C-U Health District focusing on prevention efforts, contact tracing in Phase Four

Post author:Samantha Boyle / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:July 8, 2020
Post category:Public Health

Julie Pryde, administrator for the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, said the state will continue in Phase Four now until the pandemic ends, meaning masks and six-feet social distancing are still recommended and required in public spaces. The health district is in the process of hiring more contact tracers, for example. About 30 contact tracers work there now to track the persons with whom an infected person has had potential contact with.

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District

Champaign-Urbana Public Health District warns of foodborne outbreak

Post author:Dylan Tiger
Post published:July 1, 2020
Post category:Public Health

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) notified the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) of a "multi-state outbreak" of an intestinal illness known as cyclosporiasis. According to the press release, it is believed that the outbreak to be linked to packaged garden salad, and there are six cases of the illness in Champaign County as of July 1. Fresh Express issued a recall for the products on June 27, 2020. The recalled food products were made in a production facility in Streamwood, Illinois. This factory was also linked to over 500 cases in 2018, and infections were traced to McDonald's restaurants in several states.

Meat and shopping: One more impact of the coronavirus on ordinary life

Post author:Joey Birrittier / Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting
Post published:June 19, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Public Health

It began in mid-March when the new coronavirus became part of ordinary American life with shortages of household products like hand sanitizer, toilet paper and paper towels. Now, as May has turned to June, scarcity – and the fear of it -- is all about the meat. As of June 6, there have been at least 20,400 reported positive cases tied to meatpacking facilities in at least 216 plants in 33 states, and at least 74 reported worker deaths, according to a Midwest Center analysis.

Virus outbreaks hit businesses throughout county

Post author:Samantha Boyle / For CU-CitizenAccess
Post published:June 11, 2020
Post category:CU-Covid19 Public Health

Twenty-six outbreaks have been recorded across several facilities and businesses in the county as of June 8, according to Julie Pryde, Champaign-Urbana Public Health District administrator. The health district has recorded 30 total outbreaks, including those at the Rantoul Foods meat processing plant, an outdoor equipment manufacturing plant and two nursing homes, University Rehabilitation Center and Meadowbrook Health Center.