Is it a COLD, the FLU or COVID, How To Know the Difference

We're quickly approaching the 2020 cold and flu season with the extra challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic.

For over six months, every time someone has coughed, sneezed or had a runny nose around me, my first thought was... is it COVID? I'm pretty sure I am not the only one who feels that way. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) knows that this cold and flu season is going to cause a tremendous amount of difficulty and anxiety for all of us. To help ease some of our anxious thoughts, the IDPH created a chart that will help differentiate between the common cold, the flu or a possible case of COVID-19.

The chart includes several signs and symptoms for cold, flu or Covid-19 and then provides how they, do or do not, play a role in the three different illnesses.