Hospital staff working inside a COVID-19 screening tent in Chicago on March 26. Photo: Jim Vondruska/NurPhoto via Getty Images
An infant less than one year old died in Chicago, Illinois after testing positive for the novel coronavirus, the state health department said on Saturday.
Details: The death would mark the first reported infant mortality from COVID-19 in the U.S. The fatality rate for the novel coronavirus in the U.S. is highest among those over 85 years old, per the CDC.
What they're saying: "There has never before been a death associated with COVID-19 in an infant. A full investigation is underway to determine the cause of death,” Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike said Saturday in a press release.
"We must do everything we can to prevent the spread of this deadly virus. If not to protect ourselves, but to protect those around us."— IDPH Director Ngozi Ezike
The big picture: Most recorded cases in Illinois are currently in Chicago and the surrounding counties. The state health department has reported 3,491 COVID-19 cases as of Saturday, including 47 deaths.
- The state recorded five deaths last Friday.
Flashback: The Los Angeles County health department in California said Tuesday "there may be an alternate explanation" for the death of a teenager whose "early tests indicated a positive result for COVID-19."
Go deeper: Illinois issues stay-at-home order amid coronavirus outbreak