Shapiro Developmental Center Has More COVID-19 Cases Than Any Illinois Health Facility
CHICAGO (CBS) -- No Illinois health facility has more cases of COVID-19 than the Shapiro Developmental Center in Kankakee. Wednesday there were 50 residents and 19 staff members with confirmed cases for a total of 69 cases. The total number of cases in all of Kankakee County had reached 150, meaning the Shapiro Center makes up 46% of the cases.
Paul Bogue was one of the first to get sick at the center. His condition has since worsened. Paul is on a ventilator and in critical condition. He has been moved to a Kankakee hospital.
Several staffers and families reached out to CBS 2 saying that in the early days the facility failed to keep staff safe and families informed about the virus on campus, but in the days since, testing and workplace focus on the crisis has improved, according to many of those same early critics, even as the numbers soar to 53, which is the most of any state-run health facility in the state.
"Yes we could say that is a large number," said Lindsay Wilson with the Kankakee County Health Department. "But it's not specifically unexpected because there are so many people that live so closely together."
Close living is a plight well documented at nursing homes, prisons and places like the Shapiro Center.
The next biggest cluster of cases is 29 at the Ludeman Developmental Center in Park Forest.
Because so many staff members are sick, all time off has been canceled. The state health department has staff dedicated to rumor control online to prevent misinformation on social media.