ABOUT CORONAVIRUS DISEASE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT
About Coronavirus & Disease Prevention
IS IT A COLD? THE FLU? COVID?
¿ES UN RESFRIADO INFLUENZA o COVID-19?
CDC Isolation and Quarantine Guidance
Testing positive for COVID-19 or being exposed to COVID-19 requires safety precautions to stop further spread of the virus. Read here to learn about quarantine and isolation, when to stay home and for how long, and the effective role of masking.
Find FREE Masks & Tests. Locate COVID-19 treatments & vaccines.
Masks
Masks continue to be effective in protecting you and others from COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses. Free N95 masks may be available at local pharmacies and healthcare providers.
Learn more about when to wear a mask and where to access them for free.
Testing
COVID tests can help you know if you have COVID-19 when you have symptoms, have been exposed, or are about to meet up with others.
Treatment
Treatments for COVID-19 are now widely available. If you test positive for COVID-19, talk to a doctor as soon as possible about treatment options. The Test-to-Treat program is one easy way to get treatment. Test-to-Treat locations will give you a test and treatment.
Find a Test-to-Treat location near you
Vaccines
Being fully vaccinated and boosted is the best way to protect against severe illness and hospitalization from COVID-19.
Learn About COVID-19 Therapeutic Treatments
Therapeutic treatments are available for individuals who have been recently diagnosed with COVID-19 or as a preventative medication for those, who due to being severely immunocompromised, are likely not to produce an effective vaccine response.
Access to these treatments are limited to authorized providers. Regional hospital coordination centers, the population in IDPH COVID-19 regions, and participation as a federal pharmacy partner (Walgreens and Walmart) are considered when determining supply allocations. Long term care facilities have been allocated supply through their participating pharmacies. Recently, the supply of COVID-19 therapeutic treatments have been matching patient need.
Due to supply, how these medications are administered, treatment effectiveness, and potential side effects, eligibility for these medications must be determined by the individual’s physician and require a prescription.
Click here to learn more about COVID-19 therapies.
Click here to find locations providing COVID-19 therapeutics.
INFECTION PREVENTION MEASURES BASED ON NEW COMMUNITY COVID-19 LEVELS
LOW
- Stay up to date with COVID vaccinations and boosters.
- Maintain improved ventilation throughout indoor spaces when possible.
- Follow CDC guidance on quarantine and isolation.
- Get tested if symptomatic or exposed
- If high risk:
- Have a plan for rapid testing
- Talk to physician about treatments available
MODERATE
- If immunocompromised or at risk for severe illness, talk to a physician about wearing a mask and other precautions
- If you will be in contact with an individual who is at high risk for severe illness:
- Consider self-testing before contact
- Consider masking indoors around them
- Stay up to date with COVID vaccinations and boosters
- Maintain improved ventilation throughout indoor spaces when possible
- Follow CDC guidance on isolation and quarantine
- Get tested is symptomatic or exposed
- If high risk
- have a plan for rapid testing
- talk to physician about treatments available
HIGH
- Wear a will-fitting mask indoors in public regardless on vaccination status
- If immunocompromised or at risk for severe illness,
- wear a mask or respirator that provides greater protection
- consider avoiding non-essential indoor activities in public
- talk to your physician about other precautions
- If you will be in contact with an individual who is at high risk for severe illness:
- Consider self-testing before contact
- Consider masking indoors around them
- Stay up to date with COVID vaccinations and boosters
- Maintain improved ventilation throughout indoor spaces when possible
- Follow CDC guidance on isolation and quarantine
- Get tested is symptomatic or exposed
- If high risk
- have a plan for rapid testing
- talk to physician about treatments available
Don’t Discard That Mask Yet!
While masking requirements have eased in Will County and many areas throughout the nation, masks continue to be one of the most effective ways to prevent spreading and becoming infected with COVID-19. Masks will continue to be part of the layered prevention strategy, especially during times of high Community COVID-19 levels.
Individuals who are ill with COVID-19 or live with or are caring for someone who has COVID-19, should wear a mask. Additionally, wearing a mask is recommended for individuals who are more likely to experience severe illness with COVID-19 such as the elderly and those with immunocompromised conditions.
What type of mask is best? A mask that covers the nose and mouth and is comfortable and likely to be worn consistently.
Coronavirus Symptoms
- Fever
- Cough
- Difficulty Breathing or Shortness of Breath
- Chills
- Sore Throat
- Headache
- Loss of Taste, Smell
- New confusion
- Bluish lips or face
*This is not a complete symptoms list, please seek your “medical home” or doctor for testing and treatment options.
What To Do If You Are Sick
- Call your doctor If you develop symptoms such as fever, cough, and/or difficulty breathing, and have been in close contact with a person known to have COVID-19 or have recently traveled from an area with ongoing spread of COVID-19,
- Stay home
- Do not walk into a healthcare facility, urgent care clinic, or hospital before calling.
- Visit the CDC Guidance website for more info.
- Nuevo Coronavirus, Spanish CDC website
- Read the CDC guidance for COVID-19 quarantine and isolation following exposure or a positive test.
The vast majority of those exposed to Coronavirus will not require hospitalization; symptoms are often mild enough to care at home. However, if you develop threatening symptoms such as shortness of breath, dehydration, changes in mental status, or other complications, call your doctor and seek immediate medical attention.