Illinois reports first known U.S. death of an infant with the coronavirus.

State Street in The Loop business area in Chicago, Il., on SaturdayCredit...Joshua Lott for The New York Times

An infant who tested positive for the coronavirus has died in Chicago, the authorities said on Saturday. It was the first known death of a child younger than a year old with the virus in the United States, although the authorities in some states do not release details about people who die.

Newborns and babies have seemed to be largely unaffected by the coronavirus, but three new studies suggest that the virus may reach the fetus in utero.

“There has never before been a death associated with Covid-19 in an infant,” said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. “A full investigation is underway to determine the cause of death.” Older adults, especially those in their 80s and 90s, have been viewed as the most vulnerable in the outbreak, but younger people have also died.

By Saturday night, deaths in the United States had surpassed 2,000, at least 50 of them in Illinois. More than 3,500 known cases of the virus have been identified in Illinois.

Reference: NY Times