* Mitch Dudek at the Sun-Times…

Two people have died and more than 50 have tested positive for the coronavirus at the Elisabeth Ludeman Center, an enormous state-run facility for adults with severe disabilities in Park Forest that’s become a virus “hot spot” in the south suburbs.

The majority of cases are residents who live at the facility, but more than a dozen staff members have been infected, Park Forest Mayor Jonathan Vanderbilt said Friday. […]

Vanderbilt is imploring the public to donate personal protective gear to the facility.

It is most in need of disposable stethoscopes, disposable blood pressure cuffs and disposable gowns. Vanderbilt said he reached out to the Cubs and White Sox asking for the teams’ rain ponchos, which could double as protective gowns for staff at the facility.

“The staff is desperate for this protective gear,” Vanderbilt said. “Many of the residents have underlying health issues, and the number of infections at the facility is expected to rise, that’s the scary part.”

* In the wake of news about outbreaks in at least three different state facilities which serve developmentally disabled people, Hannah Meisel at the Daily Line asked the governor and the IDPH director yesterday what the state is doing about it. The answers were somewhat unclear, so I reached out to the governor’s office for a better explanation…

IDPH has worked closely with IDHS to ensure our congregate care facilities under the state’s care were prepared for COVID-19.

At the beginning of March, IDPH issued guidance for long-term care facilities. Facilities were instructed to think through plans to identify spaces to separate residents and spread out if they needed and create plans for isolation if they needed.

First, facilities implemented visitor questionnaires and screening and then stopped visitors altogether to try to prevent the virus from entering the facility. Pre-shift assessments were implemented to ensure staff were not working while sick. When residents required healthcare they tried to provide appointments within the facility instead of transferring residents to a hospital. A lot of steps were taken before they had a positive case.

Now that there are cases at these facilities, IDPH is working closely with them in terms of having an infection control preventionist working directly with the facilities. We’re keeping a close eye, and we’ve had deliveries of thousands of PPE materials to these facilities, include a shipment that should have been delivered to Murray today.

It’s obviously not enough if we have a state facility begging baseball teams for rain ponchos.

* And there’s this from IARF President & CEO Josh Evans…

It is with deep sadness and concern that we continue to learn of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in group homes and state centers where individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities reside. With at least 47 known cases in group homes and five deaths – and with news of over a dozen residents of Murray Center - we grieve with families and guardians that are experiencing loss and we hope for a speedy recovery for those going through this horrible illness. […]

Yet for many staff in IARF provider agencies and state-run centers, there isn’t access to critically needed personal protective equipment (PPEs), such as masks, disinfectant, thermometers, and robes. We simply cannot get PPE in the quantity we need it to protect residents and staff.

Evans went on to praise the Department of Human Services and the administration for taking quick action that likely saved lives, but then said this…

Consider this a call to anyone reading this – in government, outside of government, in supply chains, in our healthcare and social services safety net with any sort of surplus or reserve – we need PPE – we need it to protect our friends and loved ones with developmental disabilities, and the staff that support them – with families of their own.

*** UPDATE *** Teri Maddox at the BND…

The Illinois Department of Human Services has conducted hundreds of coronavirus tests at its seven facilities for people with developmental disabilities in the past week, yielding positive results for 112 residents and 43 employees.

The confirmed cases include 17 residents and six employees at Warren G. Murray Developmental Center in Centralia, the third-largest facility in the state with 241 residents and 559 employees. […]

At least 69 residents and employees have tested positive for coronavirus at Samuel H. Shapiro Developmental Center in Kankakee, the state’s largest facility for people with developmental disabilities. Elisabeth Ludeman Developmental Center in Park Forest, the second-largest, had 52 confirmed cases and two deaths as of Thursday.