ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Winnebago County Health Director Sandra Martell began the press conference with an update on voting efforts during election season in a pandemic. Maks will be required for in-person voting.

Dr. Martell encouraged anyone who is healthy and has their flu-shots to serve as an election judge or poll worker.

Dr. Martell says a case of the flu has already been reported in a 6-year-old at a local hospital. Experts say that 8% of the American population gets the flu each year.

525 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the last three days. 8,705 total cases have been confirmed in Winnebago County since the pandemic began.

The county is averaging 175 new cases per day. The latest cases range in ages from three months to 89 years. The health director said that family events, the difficulty in enacting new mitigations, and people still ‘going out and about’ have not helped in bringing the positivity rate down.

The rolling seven-day positivity rate sits at 12.3%. No new deaths are being reported. Dr. Martell added that hospital capacity has stabilized.

Region 1 has been over the 8% positivity rate threshold since September 28th.

Dr. Martell announced the closure order for two more establishments: Latham Tap West Bar and Grill and Golden Corral in Rockford.

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