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QUINCY, Ill. (AP) — The state of Illinois has confirmed three more deaths from Legionnaires' disease at a Quincy veterans' home, increasing the number of the outbreak's fatalities to seven.
Officials with the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs and the state Department of Public Health say each of the victims had underlying medical conditions, with an average age of 86.
Thirty-nine veterans' home residents have been sickened so far. Test results for others remain pending.
State Public Health Director Dr. Nirav Shah said he expects the death toll and the number of infected residents to increase since the disease has a two-week incubation period.
Legionnaires' disease is a severe form of pneumonia, with lung inflammation usually caused by infection. Most people get it from inhaling bacteria that can't be transmitted by human contact.
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