Illinois officials reported 90,369 cases of COVID-19, including 4,058 deaths, as of Friday afternoon. Worldwide, there were 4.5 million cases and more than 308,000 deaths as of Saturday, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Read below for details on latest developments: Virus spreads at nursing homes; nurse regrets Wisconsin bar visit; Illinois' positivity rate drops; Chicago Public Library workers prepare for possible reopening; stay-at-home order enforcement; more than 1 million unemployment claims; Adler Planetarium cuts 120 staffers.
With a drastic increase in the amount of testing in Illinois, the state’s public health department reported today that it received results from the last 24 hours showing just 9% of tests were positive for COVID-19. It’s the lowest statewide positivity rate in Illinois this month.
The lower the rate of positive test results, the sooner the four regions of the state might begin to reopen sectors of their economies under the metrics set by Gov. JB Pritzker’s plan. The plan says a region's test results must be below 20% for 14 days before it could move to the next phase of his reopening scheme.
Meanwhile, the Illinois Public Health Department reported 2,432 more COVID-19 cases today, including 130 deaths.
Chicago Public Library employees were told via email yesterday that they are to return to work next week. In an email, Commissioner Andrea Telli wrote, “We are at the starting gate of a marathon and will take our first steps together on May 20.” Telli said coming back that day will allow workers to prepare branches for a targeted June 1 reopening. That’s the start of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s “Protecting Chicago” plan, when certain businesses and services can reopen under strict conditions.
But today, Lightfoot said in a statement: “Absolutely no date has been set to open libraries to the public, and any reopening decision would be consistent with public health guidance and dependent on where our data is at that time.”
John Rayburn, president of AFSCME’s Local 1215 representing library workers, said some employees are eager to get back to work, but others are nervous about the potential of catching COVID-19 if a coworker is sick. Rayburn said the union is still working with library management on the full list of protections available to workers, but employees will be equipped with masks, gloves and additional hand sanitizers, according to Telli’s email.
The email also reminded workers they may be entitled to leave under Chicago’s Families First Coronavirus Response Act if they are “experiencing COVID-19 like symptoms, have been told to self-quarantine, have an underlying medical condition, or have childcare issues due to COVID-19 (school or daycare is closed).”
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. JB Pritzker appealed to Illinoisans’ common sense instead of forcing them to comply with his stay-at-home order.
But as the public health crisis drags on, some Illinois businesses and political leaders are defying the Democratic governor’s order. Pritzker’s administration is taking a harder line on enforcement, saying that his order is crucial to saving lives as it issues dozens of warnings to business owners across the state.
Illinoisans filed more than 72,000 first-time claims for regular unemployment benefits last week, the state Department of Employment Security announced today. The state has processed more than 1 million claims for regular unemployment benefits since March 1 — more than 11 times the number of claims processed in the same period last year.
This week, the state began processing claims for gig workers not previously covered by unemployment through the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. More than 50,000 PUA claims were filed in the first three days of operation this week, but those numbers will be included in the next tally to come next week.
Gov. JB Pritzker has been repeatedly criticized for not acting fast enough to bolster the state’s aged system for filing for unemployment, as out-of-work Illinoisans have had trouble accessing the state’s website. In the case of PUA applications, they had to wait for a platform to come online to even apply. The state paid millions to an outside agency in the past month to hire more people to deal with the problem as well as build a new platform to take the PUA applications.
Meanwhile, Illinois public health officials today announced 138 new deaths reported from COVID-19, among 3,239 newly identified cases. That makes for a total of 3,928 deaths and 87,937 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
Chicago’s Adler Planetarium had an eventful week, in both good and bad ways. Yesterday, the United States’ first planetarium celebrated 90 years with a series of online events. The next day, it cut 120 staffers, including full-time, part-time and leadership positions, according to a statement.
“Based on the recovery plans set forth by the Illinois Governor and Chicago Mayor’s offices, which responsibly recognize the serious nature of this pandemic, it is clear we will not be in a position to reopen our physical facility for quite some time,” Adler spokesperson Jennifer Howell said in the statement. It goes on to say the museum will continue to focus on virtual events and engagements.
The Adler Planetarium is about a $20 million not-for-profit cultural institution. In their most recent public tax forms, there were 308 employees.
Two DePaul University students filed a class action lawsuit demanding tuition reimbursements due to the COVID-19 shutdown.
The lawsuit, filed yesterday in U.S. District Court, follows a national trend of students and parents suing for partial refunds after classes shifted online and campuses were shut down to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.
DePaul announced it would shift classes online for the spring quarter on March 11, and students were required to pay full tuition for that quarter. The complaint argues students are not getting the same educational experience they expected when they enrolled and cannot access the facilities and services they paid for. Therefore, they argue, the university has been “unjustly enriched” and students should receive a partial refund for those tuition and fees.
4:45 p.m. Sheriff Tom Dart lashes out over COVID-19 lawsuit
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart is accusing advocates for jail inmates of misusing the federal courts during the COVID-19 crisis to push for decarceration.
Last month a coalition of civil rights groups sued Dart for a mass release of inmates who are medically vulnerable to the virus.
A federal judge refused to go along with the release but ordered the sheriff to take various steps against the virus’s spread in the jail. Those included stepping up testing, keeping inmates apart from each other and banning double-inmate cells. Now attorneys for Dart are appealing that order. And they’re blasting the inmate advocates.
“It has become apparent that plaintiffs’ counsel has been singularly focused on categorial release at all costs—arguably pursuing a political decarceration policy through misuse of the legal process in the middle of a pandemic,” attorneys for the sheriff’s office argued in a 28-page brief filed late Monday.
As of yesterday, according to the office, the virus had sickened 534 detainees and killed seven.
— Chip Mitchell
2:58 p.m. Illinois announces 144 COVID-19 deaths and more than 4,000 new cases
Illinois public health officials today announced 4,014 new cases of COVID-19 and 144 deaths, for a total statewide of 83,021 cases and 3,601 deaths.
Illinois Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said that the state’s positivity rate — that’s the rate of tests that came out positive as a fraction of all tests given — now averages 18%. But those positivity rates lag by a few days, she said, as the state gathers information.
Gov. JB Pritzker announced the state would expedite $25 million in state grants to cities and towns across the state to help support capital projects that local governments need, an effort to jumpstart “shovel-ready” projects to spur economic growth. Pritzker also said the state’s legislature needs to return to work to pass a state budget and other legislation to help distribute funds to cities and towns that aren’t benefiting from federal grants.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
6:45 a.m. The rising star of stay-at-home opposition
Republican state Rep. Darren Bailey, a Southern Illinois farmer and first-term lawmaker, has galvanized rural Illinoisans who have been hurt economically by Gov. JB Pritzker’s stay-at-home orders and believe the governor is impinging on their liberties.
And Bailey gained national attention last month when he won a ruling in a lawsuit against Pritzker in a state courtroom in Clay County, 240 miles south of Chicago. Bailey describes himself as a “typical, concerned American patriot.”
— Dan Mihalopoulos
May 11
3:07 p.m. Peak of cases not expected till mid-June, Gov. JB Pritzker says
Describing the news as “disheartening,” Gov. JB Pritzker — appearing from his home on a shared virtual call — announced new modeling projects Illinois has still not reached its peak number of cases of COVID-19, and has extended the length of time for the current plateauing of cases into mid-June. Pritzker again reiterated that the flattening of cases is a sign that the stay-at-home order has stopped the exponential growth of coronavirus cases in the state.
Pritzker also gave an update on how each of the four regions of the state are measuring up in order to move from Phase 2 to Phase 3 of reopening the economy. The northeast region of the state, which includes Cook County, the collar counties and Grundy and Kankakee counties, is not meeting all three metrics needed to move to Phase 3, though there’s time for that data to change. In particular, fewer people need to test positive for the region to move to Phase 3 by the end of the month.
Additionally, Illinois began distributing a possible treatment for COVID-19 to hospitals around the state over the weekend. Illinois Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike said today that the state distributed the antiviral medicine remdesivir for use on patients based on the number of patients in intensive care at hospitals, with the expectation that more would be coming.
Ezike also announced another 1,266 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, including 54 deaths.
— Tony Arnold
1:13 p.m. Blue Angels release details on Chicago flyover tomorrow
The Navy’s Blue Angels will boom over the Chicago area for 15 minutes tomorrow to honor local health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aerial demonstration scheduled from 11:45 a.m. to 12 p.m. is part of the Blue Angels’ ongoing nationwide tribute to workers at the front lines in fighting the coronavirus outbreak.
According to a Blue Angels tweet and map today, the bright blue F/A-18 Hornet aircraft will begin their flyover on Chicago’s South Side lakefront, then follow a twisting route that will take them as far south as Oak Lawn, as far west as Melrose Park, over downtown Chicago and the North Side, north almost all the way to Evanston, and down the lakefront.
If you’re familiar with the Blue Angels’ practice runs and performance during Chicago’s annual Air and Water Show, you know you can’t miss hearing them. Their roar can literally shake buildings as they pass overhead. You can see them in the sky, but they move up to 700 mph during a performance, according to their website.
The Blue Angels are urging people to follow stay-at-home and social-distancing guidelines during their flyover. They add that the flyover is subject to change.
— Mark LeBien
10:25 a.m. Senior Pritzker staffer tests positive for COVID-19, but governor remains virus-free
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker remains free of COVID-19 after a senior staffer who had close contact with the governor tested positive for the coronavirus late last week, his office confirmed today.
Pritzker’s aides would not identify the sickened member of the governor’s inner circle, who was asymptompatic. But a statement released today said the governor and a group of his senior-most staff members would no longer be reporting for work at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago and instead would work from home for an undetermined period of time, his office said.
Since learning of the diagnosis, the governor has been tested twice, most recently on Sunday, and results showed he is not carrying the virus. No one else on Pritzker’s leadership team has tested positive for COVID-19, the statement read.
This marks the second occasion in which an employee inside the governor’s office tested positive for COVID-19. An earlier staffer who became ill has recovered.
— Dave McKinney
9:30 a.m. U of C and AP poll shows most oppose anti-shutdown protests
A majority of Americans disapprove of protests against restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus, according to a new poll from the University of Chicago Divinity School and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
The survey finds that 55% of Americans disapprove of the protests that have popped up in some states, including Illinois, as some Americans begin chafing at public health measures that have decimated the economy. The poll shows 31% approve of the demonstrations.
Democrats are more likely than Republicans to disapprove of such protests, 67% to 51%. Thirty-two percent of Republicans and 25% of Democrats say they approve. Only 8% said public protests, marches and rallies should be unrestricted during the outbreak, while 41% think they should be allowed only with restrictions and 50% think they should not be allowed at all.
8:21 a.m. Cook County correction officer dies from COVID-19
A third Cook County correctional officer has died from coronavirus disease complications. The sheriff’s office says Officer Antoine Jones died yesterday at the age of 51. Jones was diagnosed with COVID-19 in late March. He had been with the department for 18 years. He’s survived by his wife and five adult children.
May 10
2:59 p.m. New cases are lowest in nearly three weeks
Health officials today announced 1,656 new cases of coronavirus disease in Illinois compared with yesterday, the lowest number since April 21. As of today, the state has recorded 77,741 cases of the disease.
Although new cases were down during the past 24 hours, so were tests. The state said labs processed 13,653 specimens since Saturday, when 16,617 tests were reported.
Illinois has seen at least 2,000 new coronavirus cases every day since April 22, with several exceptions. Today was the fewest number of new cases since April 21, when 1,551 were reported.
Officials today also reported 57 more fatalities, bringing Illinois’ death toll to 3,406 since the start of the pandemic. The vast majority of the new deaths were in Cook County, where the victims were men and women ranging from their 20s to 100 years old.
11:48 a.m. Pritzker on CNN: No reopening until benchmarks are met
Gov. JB Pritzker defended his go-slow approach to reopening Illinois during an appearance on CNN this morning. Pritzker said he’s watching the trending of new positive cases of COVID-19, hospitalizations and the availability of hospital beds as he considers steps to loosen restrictions.
“And we will not reopen unless we meet all of the standards that I have set for doing so,” the governor said during an interview with Jake Tapper on State of the Union.
Until there’s a vaccine or other effective treatment for the coronavirus, Pritzker said, “We’re still going to have to socially distance. The truth is that coronavirus is still out there. It hasn’t gone anywhere. And so we all are going to have to change the way we do things until we’re able to eradicate it.”
Last Tuesday, Pritzker revealed a five-step reopening plan for Illinois’ economy that’s based on how well regions of the state are doing at keeping down hospitalizations and cases of COVID-19.
May 9
2:53 p.m. State reports more than 2,300 new cases
Health officials today reported 2,325 new cases of coronavirus disease during the past 24 hours, bringing Illinois’ total to 76,085 since the start of the pandemic. There were 111 additional deaths, for a total of 3,349.
Officials also reported that, since Friday, laboratories have processed 16,617 specimens for a total of 416,331 tests in the state.
Gov. JB Pritzker did not hold his daily news conference updating Illinois’ response to the pandemic, and he is not planning a news update tomorrow.
12:24 p.m. City Hall says four companies will make one million masks
The city of Chicago today announced a deal with four local businesses to produce one million reusable cloth masks to be distributed to residents, especially populations most at risk to the coronavirus. The city will pay the vendors a total of up to $2.2 million to start production immediately, creating masks that will add to Chicago’s current stockpile, according to a City Hall news release today.
The vendors are: Barbara Bates Designs, GAIAU Product Design and Development, Silk Screen Express and The Will Group. They’ll produce 250,000 reusable cloth masks that will be sent to aldermanic offices, and another 750,000 masks to be distributed through the city’s Racial Equity Rapid Response Team.
The Chicago Department of Public Health vetted the businesses’ masks to ensure they meet national safety standards, the release said.
9:56 a.m. Delta suspending flights at Midway
Delta Airlines is suspending its flight operations at 10 airports around the country, including Chicago’s Midway, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The airline says the flight suspensions will begin this Wednesday, May 13, and will last “at least” until September.
Delta says it’s taking the action due to a drop in air travel and to “allow more of our frontline employees to minimize their COVID-19 exposure risk.” Delta will continue to offer flights at O’Hare International Airport. The 10 airports where it’s temporarily halting service are all close to other airports where it will still offer flights, Delta says.
Delta had previously announced an 85% cut in its service schedule as demand for air travel has fallen during the pandemic.
8:18 a.m. Nearly 50% of Illinois’ COVID-19 deaths are linked to nursing homes
Nursing homes now account for nearly half of Illinois deaths with a confirmed link to COVID-19, a WBEZ analysis of state data shows.
The Illinois Department of Public Health yesterday afternoon posted data showing that 1,553 — nearly 48% — of the state’s coronavirus deaths are tied to long-term-care facilities and assisted-living establishments.
Read the full story.
— Chip Mitchell
May 8
2:57 p.m. Illinois announces another 130 deaths as state exceeds 20,000 tests a day
Illinois public health officials announced today that 130 more people have died from COVID-19, and they’ve identified 2,887 more cases of the novel coronavirus.
That brings the state’s total to 3,241 total deaths and 73,760 cases identified since the pandemic began.
Gov. JB Pritzker also reported that for the first time, Illinois has exceeded 20,000 tests for COVID-19 administered in one day. Of those tests across the state, 14% of them were positive for the virus, said Illinois Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike.
The state has been aiming for a positivity rate of less than 20% for 28 days for any region of the state in order to move toward a next phase of reopening.
Pritkzer said the state has more than 244 testing sites now open, and Illinois is fifth among all states in the number of tests it has completed since the beginning of the pandemic. But Pritzker said efforts to continue to expand the tests would continue, saying that 20,000 a day still is not enough.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
1:30 p.m. Mayor Lori Lightfoot announces her plan to reopen Chicago
This afternoon Mayor Lori Ligthtfoot is unveiling her plan to reopen Chicago as the city looks ahead to recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lightfoot’s five-step plan, called “Protecting Chicago,” says Chicago is in Phase 2 of its reopening process. It follows Gov. JB Pritzker’s state-wide, reopening plan released earlier this week. Each phase of the city’s plan will be driven by economic and health data, the mayor’s office said. Stores and nonessential business wouldn’t open until Phase 3, which includes a tight restriction on social gatherings, limiting them to less than 10 people.
“While our goal is to get as many people back to work as quickly and safely as possible, we will keep data and science as the north stars of this work, as we have throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, the city’s public health commissioner.
At this moment in time, Chicago is in Phase 2 of the plan, which allows only essential businesses to let employees come into work and requires face coverings when in public.
Nonessential workers won’t return to work until Phase 3. Chicago’s progress through the phases will depend on the availability of testing and the rate the disease is spreading. The city will also monitor hospital capacity to determine whether it’s safe to move to another phase.
Chicago still seems to be far off from the final stages of the plan, for which LIghtfoot’s administration has not yet released metrics. Have questions or comments about the plan? The mayor’s office is collecting feedback here.
Read the full story.
— Claudia Morell
10:08 a.m. Illinois is issuing marriage licenses via teleconference
Gov. JB Pritzker this month gave county governments across the state the authority to issue marriage licenses during the pandemic via teleconference.
The governor’s executive order lets county governments work around a provision in state law requiring couples to “appear before” the county clerk before completion of marriage licenses. That appearance was necessary for couples to provide proof of who they are. The executive order gives couples the ability to do that virtually.
Cook County has already been granting virtual licenses and conducting virtual marriage ceremonies since the first week of April, accommodating about 15 to 20 marriage licenses a day.
Read the full story.
— Claudia Morell
May 7
3:16 p.m. Group seeks support for Chicago street vendors struggling during the pandemic
A volunteer-led organization is trying to raise $15,000 to help Chicago street vendors who’ve lost their job because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Increase The Peace launched a GoFund me campaign a few days ago, and the group is already halfway to its goal.
“Street vendors are some of the most vulnerable and impacted folks in this pandemic. Most street vendors do not not receive a stimulus check,” said Berto Aguayo, who works with Increase The Peace. “Most of them do not qualify for business grants either from the city, state or the federal government, and a lot of them have seen their revenue cut dramatically because of the lack of foot traffic and the lack of overall business.”
— María Inés Zamudio
2:51 p.m. Illinois exceeds 3,000 COVID-19 deaths
Illinois public health officials announced 138 people have died in the past day from COVID-19, and 2,641 new cases have been identified in the state. That brings the total to 3,111 deaths and 70,873 identified cases in Illinois since the state began tracking cases.
Illinois’ overall so-called positivity rate — the percentage of total tests that came out positive for COVID-19 — was 15% for the past 24 hours. The state is aiming for a 28-day plateauing or reduction below 20% of positivity before it moves to the next phase of reopening for any region, state officials have said.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
1:04 p.m. More than 1 in 5 inmates in Chicago federal jail have tested positive for COVID-19, court records show
Federal prosecutors, in a motion filed yesterday, contend that more than 130 inmates in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Chicago have tested positive for the coronavirus.
That’s more than 20% of the total inmate population, based on information from the federal Bureau of Prisons, which runs the jail in Chicago.
Prosecutors filed the motion to oppose a request for release from a woman being held in the jail while awaiting sentencing. Prosecutors have given some other details about life inside the federal jail as they argue against release of other inmates at the facility.
In a motion filed earlier this week in the case of singer R. Kelly, prosecutors said that the MCC Chicago “recently received a rapid test machine and has started to perform mass testing.”
The motion says the vast majority of inmates who have tested positive are asymptomatic, and the “MCC Chicago has reported no deaths as a result of COVID-19 infections, and there is no evidence that the medical staff has been unable to adequately handle the medical needs of inmates who contract the virus.”
According to the Bureau of Prisons, more than 20 staff members at the Chicago jail have tested positive for COVID-19.
— Patrick Smith
12:18 p.m. Nursing home workers strike called off after union reaches tentative agreement
The union for 10,000 nursing home workers in Illinois has reached an agreement that averts a strike threatened to begin tomorrow morning as COVID-19 spreads to an increasing number of facilities.
The two-year tentative contract, which came together in talks late yesterday, improves base pay for all workers, hazard bonuses during the pandemic and sick-leave benefits during the crisis.
Read the full story.
— Chip Mitchell
9:33 a.m. Big Ten football season uncertain
Less than four months before the scheduled kickoff of the college football season, not one of the 14 schools in the Big Ten Conference can say for sure it will have students back on campus this fall — a crucial step for sports.
Uncertainty about how the coronavirus pandemic will unfold through the summer has kept universities from making a definitive decision about the fall semester, which typically begins in late August. The football season, for now, is due to begin Aug. 29, though Big Ten schools don’t begin play until the following week.
Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren told the Chicago Tribune the conference is at least six weeks away from making any determinations.
Read the full story.
— Associated Press
May 6
3:10 p.m. Illinois announces 136 more COVID-19 deaths
Illinois public health officials announced today that 136 more people have died from COVID-19, and 2,270 new cases of the virus have been identified.
That makes a total of 68,232 cases, including 2,974 deaths, the state reported.
Gov. JB Pritkzer today also addressed the disproportionate way the virus is hitting the Latino community. Pritzker said during his daily briefing that current state data show, of those who have filled in the form, the positivity rate for those tested has been 60% for Latino or Hispanic respondents, which is roughly three times the state average.
He said the state has been working to build testing sites within communities of color, and that a third of all public testing sites in the state have been developed in communities with a significant Latino population.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
2:58 p.m. As cases climb, Chicago mayor launches new COVID-19 outreach program aimed at Latino communities
As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to grow in Chicago’s Latino community, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced today a new COVID-19 engagement strategy aimed at reaching the stricken community.
The city’s director of public health, Dr. Allison Arwady, said just a month ago Latinos accounted for 14% of the city’s COVID-19 cases and 9% of the deaths. Now, Latinos make up 37% of cases and 25% of the deaths, she said.
“As you can see, these numbers are quite profound and they call us to another moment of action and a sense of urgency,” Lightfoot said. “Equity and inclusion are not just feel-good expressions, they truly are, in the middle of this pandemic, the difference between life and death.”
Lightfoot launched racial rapid response teams last month following a WBEZ story that showed black Chicagoans were dying of COVID-19 at disproportionate rates. Today, she said these teams will be expanded among Latino neighborhoods with high infection rates.
The engagement strategy will include a multilingual campaign, including videos and door-to-door distribution of information. A series of virtual town hall meetings is scheduled to begin tomorrow with one focusing on the elderly community. The city is partnering with AARP and the Spanish broadcaster Univision.
— María Inés Zamudio
10:30 a.m. Pitchfork cancels this year’s festival
The annual Pitchfork Music Festival scheduled for July 17-19 in Chicago’s Union Park has been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the company announced today. Pitchfork made the announcement on its website, saying it was “heartbroken” by the decision and that ticket holders will get full refunds. They’ll be contacted by email to learn their refund options, the festival says.
“It can be pretty daunting to think about the future of live music right now, but know that we are fully committed to bringing Pitchfork Music Festival back in 2021, if the public health situation allows for it,” the company says.
Pitchfork says it’s planning livestreams and other ways to “use the full weight of Pitchfork to support musicians and the community around our festival.”
7:51 a.m. Virus testing lags in hard-hit Latino areas
In Cook County, the ZIP codes most affected by COVID-19 are not among those receiving the highest rates of testing, according to a WBEZ analysis of data from the Illinois Department of Public Health and the U.S. Census Bureau. And those ZIP codes are in Latino neighborhoods, which have the highest and fastest-growing rates of COVID-19 in Cook County.
Read the full story.
— María Inés Zamudio
May 5
3:03 p.m. Deaths spike as Gov. Pritzker announces regional plan for reopening
Illinois public health officials today announced the largest one-day count of COVID-19 fatalities, with 176 deaths.
That makes for a total of 2,838 deaths in Illinois associated with the novel coronavirus. The state announced 2,122 new cases today, for a total of 65,962 cases across the state. These tallies came as Gov. JB Pritzker announced the parameters of a plan to reopen Illinois with a five-phase program that divides the state into five regions, with each region being allowed to reopen when it meets certain criteria. Returning to normalcy is not an option, Pritzker said, until there is a COVID-19 vaccine, an effective treatment or enough widespread immunity.
“We have to figure out how to live with COVID-19 until it can be vanquished,” Pritzker said in announcing the framework of his plan.
Pritzker identified those phases as first, the rapid spread of the virus; second, a flattening of the case counts; third, a recovery, when the number of cases identified begins to decline and gatherings of more than 10 people would begin to be allowed; fourth, a revitalization phase, as cases continue to decline and gatherings of 50 people or fewer are allowed, and schools, travel and many other business would be allowed again; and the fifth and final phase, “Illinois Restored,” a phase in which a vaccine or good treatment is available and the state would fully reopen.
The state is currently in phase 2 of the plan, or “flattening,” in which the number of cases continues to grow but at a slower rate.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
2:52 p.m. Illinois congresswoman seeks more resources and testing for nursing homes
U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Evanston, announced a new bill today to address the spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes across the state and country.
“We have seen many people … needlessly die, because they haven’t had what they needed,” Schakowsky said in a telephone news conference, in which she was joined by SEIU Healthcare Illinois president Greg Kelley and others who decried current working and living conditions in nursing homes.
The legislation calls for more resources to nursing homes hardest hit by the pandemic; more testing of residents and staff; greater transparency in reporting of COVID-19 cases and deaths; and better oversight from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that oversees nursing homes.
In Illinois, nursing homes account for at least 44% of the state’s deaths due to COVID-19, a WBEZ analysis of state health data shows. Nursing home workers have also reported troubling conditions at their facilities.
— Esther Yoon-Ji Kang
1:43 p.m. Barack and Michelle Obama to celebrate the class of 2020
Barack and Michelle Obama announced today they plan to celebrate the nation’s 2020 graduating class at three virtual commencement events.
This comes as traditional in-person graduation ceremonies are going online because of the pandemic. For weeks, students and others have been using social media to call on the former president to speak to this year’s graduating class.
First up, the former president will deliver a televised prime-time commencement address on May 16. It will air on ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC as well as other broadcast and digital streaming partners. It will also feature LeBron James, Megan Rapinoe, the Jonas Brothers, Lena Waithe and others. In a separate virtual event earlier that day, the former president will address students of historically black colleges and universities.
On June 6, the former president and first lady will both speak at a ‘Dear Class of 2020’ virtual graduation on YouTube. They’ll be joined by Lady Gaga, Malala Yousafzai, former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Alicia Keys and Kerry Washington.
— Kate Grossman
10:19 a.m. April pot sales top previous two months
Legal pot sales during Illinois’ first full month under the statewide stay-at-home order surpassed sales in two previous months, state officials announced yesterday.
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation reported that April adult-use cannabis sales totaled more than $37.2 million. Only the $39.2 million in January sales topped April.
Under Gov. JB Pritzker’s stay-at-home order, medical and adult-use cannabis dispensaries are allowed to remain open as essential businesses. Operators adapted to the new social situation by implementing online ordering systems, curbside pickup and social distancing in stores.
Read the full story.
— Associated Press
May 4
5:00 p.m. Four local TV stations will air educational programming
Chicago Public Schools is partnering with four television stations to offer educational programming while schools are closed for in-person classes.
WLS, WTTW, WCIU and Univision will run shows on their digital subchannels, such as 7.2 and 11.2. Here’s a schedule of the programming, which begins on WLS on May 6.
Most of the content will be provided through the school district’s Curriculum Equity Initiative — a $135 million, three-year effort to improve the quality of curriculum throughout the district. WTTW will offer up its own content geared toward middle school students and is not charging CPS.
Likewise, WCIU is hosting the content for free. Meanwhile, WLS and Univision reduced their air time fees. They are being paid by the Children’s First Fund, a philanthropic organization that supports CPS.
— Sarah Karp
2:56 p.m. Number of people in hospitals, on ventilators down since last week
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced 46 more people have died of COVID-19, and 2,341 new cases have been identified in the state.
That brings Illinois’ total to 2,662 known fatalities in the state and 63,840 total identified cases.
For the first time in a month, the number of cases of hospitalized people with COVID-19 dropped instead of increased week over week, with 4,493 people hospitalized as of midnight last night, down from 4,672 hospitalized people a week ago. There are still nearly 1,000 more people hospitalized with the virus than there were on April 6.
Additionally, the percentage of people on ventilators with the disease have also dropped, Pritzker said. But the governor cautioned the numbers still fluctuate day by day and hour by hour.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
7:44 a.m. Arrests in Chicago take a dive
Since Gov. JB Pritzker issued his stay-at-home order in March, arrests in Chicago have dropped by almost 75%, according to city data. It’s a sign of the difficult balance police are trying to strike between public health and public safety.
Arrests plunged as the CPD told officers to ease up on contact with the public to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Read the full story.
— Patrick Smith
May 3
2:47 p.m. State surpasses 60,000 cases
Health officials today reported 2,994 new cases of COVID-19, bringing Illinois’ total to 61,499 since the beginning of the pandemic. The total yesterday was 58,505 cases. The state also reported 63 new fatalities, raising the death toll to 2,618.
At his daily news conference, Gov. JB Pritzker said there were 19,417 coronavirus tests since yesterday, the highest number of tests in one day so far.
2:13 p.m. Gardeners celebrate reopening of nurseries
The weekend. Warm weather. And looser coronavirus rules that allowed garden centers and nurseries to reopen. The first few days of May have been just what Chicago-area green thumbs need.
Many gardeners have made a trip this weekend to their favorite local place to buy flowers, plants, seeds and other supplies. One of the spots that’s been busy is Adams & Son Gardens in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood, which reopened after Illinois’ COVID-19 restrictions forced it to close seven weeks ago.
Read the full story.
— Linda Lutton
8:54 a.m. Lightfoot condemns house parties during pandemic
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is getting exasperated with a sudden increase in large house parties, in open defiance of social distancing and stay-at-home guidelines. Police knew of at least six parties planned in the city last night.
In an effort to discourage those planned gatherings, Lightfoot showed up yesterday afternoon on a West Side street corner to condemn house parties during the pandemic. She said anyone caught at such parties could be fined or arrested.
“It’s just silly,” she said of people ignoring coronavirus precautions. “What’s it gonna’ mean? It’s gonna mean that we’re never getting out of this.”
Lightfoot encouraged residents to call police on partiers. Chicago police News Affairs says today that no arrests were made and no citations were issued yesterday related to the stay-at-home order.
— Vivian McCall
7:50 a.m. State eases restrictions on religious gatherings
As of this weekend, Illinois has slightly relaxed stay-at-home rules to allow religious services with up to 10 people attending. But some congregations are in no rush to get together again just yet.
The Rev. Marshall Hatch lost his sister and his best friend to COVID-19. Hatch told WBEZ on Saturday that his church on Chicago’s West Side won’t be reopening until it’s safer.
“The day we open, we’ll have service at 10 oclock and you can go watch the Cubs that evening or afternoon. You know, it will be obvious that crowds can gather again,” he said.
Hatch said services at New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church will continue to be online only.
Before Gov. JB Pritzker loosened the restrictions on worship services last week, a church in northwestern Illinois filed a federal lawsuit, saying the limits infringed on constitutionally protected religious rights.
The initial stay-at-home order was extended through May 30, but the state now allows congregations to gather no more than 10 people at a time as long as the participants keep a distance of six feet between one another. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago said last week it will resume services with up to 10 people, but it did not announce a date.
— Dan Mihalopolous
May 2
3:02 p.m. More than 2,400 new cases announced
Health officials today reported 2,450 new cases of COVID-19 in Illinois during the past 24 hours, and 105 more deaths. There are now a total of 58,505 cases since the pandemic began, and 2,559 deaths.
Also today, the Illinois Department of Veteran’s Affairs reported one resident at its LaSalle Veterans’ Home in LaSalle, Illinois, tested positive for the coronavirus. Officials say testing efforts are underway at the facility.
The Illinois Department of Public Health also announced there were 15,208 tests in the past 24 hours, for a total of 299,896 in the state.
During his daily update on the state’s response to the outbreak, Gov. JB Pritzker commented on protests in Chicago and Springfield yesterday by people who oppose his stay-at-home order. Pritzker, who is descended from Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, was asked for his reaction to several signs at the demonstrations that included the Nazi swastika.
“The meaning of that swastika is apparently unknown to the people who are carrying it, or if it is known, it’s a demonstration of the hate among us,” he said.
Read the full story.
9:46 a.m. Metra announces more service cuts
The number of Metra trains rolling in and out of Chicago every day is about to drop dramatically. The commuter rail agency, in response to the ridership slump during the coronavirus crisis, is cutting service on its three least busy lines.
Starting May 4 on the Heritage Corridor, which runs between Union Station and Joliet, the number of inbound trains every morning will drop from three to one and the number of outbound trains will drop from four to one. Metra is reducing the number of North Central Service trains that run between Union Station and Antioch from seven in each direction every day to one. And the SouthWest Service, which has been running 10 trains in each direction between Union Station and Manhattan, Ill., will run just two in each direction.
In March, Metra cut its weekday service in half when the statewide stay-at-home order led to a drastic reduction in ridership. Metra said the latest service reductions will save about $470,000 a month in fuel and labor costs.
— Associated Press
7:45 a.m. Nursing homes are nearly half of coronavirus deaths in state
Nursing homes now account for 44% of Illinois’ deaths due to COVID-19, a WBEZ analysis of state health data shows. The Illinois Department of Public Health on Friday afternoon posted data showing that 1,082 coronavirus deaths were tied to long-term-care facilities and assisted living establishments — 73% more than the 625 reported a week earlier and nearly four times the 286 reported on April 17. In all, there have been 2,457 coronavirus deaths in Illinois, state data show.
Read the full story.
— Chip Mitchell
May 1
2:55 p.m. Public health officials announce 105 additional deaths and more than 3,000 new cases
Illinois public health officials announced today that 105 more people have died from COVID-19, and 3,137 new cases of the coronavirus have been identified.
That brings Illinois to a total 2,457 deaths and 56,055 cases of the virus across the state. Those numbers come as Gov. JB Pritzker announced the startup of a “massive” contact tracing program for Illinois, which he said would help the state identify those who have had COVID-19 and those they’ve come into contact with — an operation that would help the state move forward in understanding the extent of the virus’ spread.
Pritzker said the state would hire contact tracers but also use volunteers to figure out who has come into contact with people who had COVID-19. Once people are identified as having had contact with COVID-19 cases, they would be encouraged to seek out tests, he said, and to isolate themselves from others in order to stem the spread of the virus. The program would keep people’s names anonymous, he said.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
2:23 p.m. Judge rules against releasing COVID-19 patient addresses to first responders
A Cook County judge ruled today that northwest suburban emergency dispatchers don’t have a right to know the addresses of residents who test positive for COVID-19, arguing the release of private health information won’t better protect them in the field.
Lawyers representing the Northwest Central Dispatch System, the emergency call system for several suburban Cook County police and fire departments, sued the county public health department in order to get access to the data. They argued first responders had a right to the information under a special exemption to health privacy laws in the case of a widespread contagious disease, like the coronavirus.
But today, Circuit Court Judge Anna Demacopoulos explained that releasing that information “will not further [the plaintiff's] goal of protecting first responders” because some COVID-19 carriers don’t show symptoms at all, and there’s still an overall lack of widespread testing that means many more cases than reported likely exist.
Demacopoulous said first responders should continue to interact with the public under the presumption that anyone could be infected with COVID-19.
Demacopoulous said the court is “greatly concerned” by the possibility of stigma or harassment if the addresses of those with COVID-19 are made public, especially when government statistics show the virus disproportionately affects at-risk communities, like those who are undocumented.
— Claudia Morell
1:17 p.m. Hundreds gather downtown to protest stay-at-home order extension
Hundreds of protesters gathered in downtown Chicago today to speak out against Illinois’ extended stay-at-home order in response to the coronavirus pandemic. They are calling on Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker to reopen more of the state’s economy.
One demonstrator — former Republican Cook County Commissioner Tony Peraica — said extending the stay-at-home order through May 29 will cause “irreparable harm” to individuals and the economy. Peraica said public bodies — including the state legislature — should convene to begin a regionalized approach to opening more sectors of the economy.
“This unilateral action by our governor and other governors across the country is causing irreparable harm,” Peraica said. “It’s time to have some accountability, and it’s time to allow people to go to work.”
Pritzker extended a statewide stay-at-home order through May 29, but he is allowing garden centers, pet groomers and golf courses to reopen. Read the full story.
— Tony Arnold
9:24 a.m. Transit data show which parts of Chicago are working from home
Chicago Transit Authority ridership has plunged since mid-March, when Illinois’ stay-at-home order went into effect. But the declines in train and bus ridership were much smaller on the city’s South and West sides compared with the North and Northwest sides.
Read the full story.
— Elliott Ramos
April 30
4:14 p.m. Chicago coronavirus case growth continues to slow
Chicago continues to flatten the curve when it comes to new COVID-19 cases, City Hall announced this afternoon.
New data released by the city’s department of public health show cases are now doubling every 15 days, instead of every 12 days. The city is now uploading the latest numbers to its data portal to allow for better analysis and searchability. According to the data, there are still enough hospital beds and ventilators in Chicago to deal with the current load of COVID-19 patients.
“If we had not seen as much flattening as we have seen, no doubt, we would have really run out of hospital space,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, the head of the Chicago Department of Public Health. “I’m feeling confident right now with where we are. But we’re not on the downturn yet.”
The death rate is also slowing, Arwady added. As of April 29, Chicago had 873 deaths and 20,499 confirmed cases. The slowdown in new cases comes as Chicago — like the rest of Illinois — is seeing more testing for COVID-19. Arwardy said the percent positivity is around 30%.
Arwady said she’s confident the peak will come in May and that city officials are talking about when it makes sense to begin lifting social distancing guidelines. The current stay-at-home order lasts until May 30. “We knew that May 1 was going to be a problem for us … definitely projecting a big surge … that would have overwhelmed our health system,” Arwady said on a call with reporters. “But once we start getting out and we’re thinking about June 1, I think as long as we are able to do it carefully and properly … we should really be heading toward an opening plan.”
— Becky Vevea
2:52 p.m. Illinois identifies another 2,500 cases and 141 deaths
Illinois public health officials announced today that 141 more people who tested positive for COVID-19 have died, among 2,563 new cases of the virus.
That makes for a total of 2,355 deaths and 52,918 cases across the state since the pandemic began.
Nearly 5,000 people remain in the hospital with the new coronavirus, with 785 of them on ventilators, said state public health director Dr. Ngozi Ezike.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
2:37 p.m. Jobless claims drop, but they’re still tenfold over last year as pandemic slump continues
The number of Illinoisans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week, but the scourge of joblessness continues to batter the state as the COVID-19 economic fallout persists.
Nearly 81,600 people in the state filed first-time unemployment claims last week, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security. That’s down from nearly 103,000 people the week prior. But compare that to the same week last year, when only about 7,300 people filed claims.
In the last two months, the state says it has processed more than 830,000 claims — but that doesn’t include the untold number of people who have been unable to access benefits. The state’s unemployment office has been swamped by people who are out of work due to the state’s stay-at-home order. And it’s still not processing claims from independent contractors and people who are self-employed, despite a federal program meant to bolster those workers during the pandemic.
— Alex Keefe
1:17 p.m. Illinois church sues Gov. JB Pritzker over stay-at-home order
A church in northwestern Illinois wants to be exempt from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker’s stay-at-home order. The Beloved Church in Lena filed a federal complaint today asking to immediately be exempt from the requirements listed in the governor’s stay-at-home order, citing its First Amendment rights. The church says the order is infringing on their right to exercise religion, speech and assembly, and prohibits them from their right to conduct worship services and religious ministry.
While Pritzker’s executive orders have not explicitly ordered religious organizations to close their doors to worshipers, the governor and state public health director have encouraged churches, synagogues and mosques to conduct their services online. Religious organizations have been allowed to continue providing food, shelter and social services to those who need it, but social distancing requirements have essentially prohibited gatherings.
There are now multiple lawsuits playing out across the state after a Clay County judge on April 27 ruled in favor of exempting one person from Pritzker’s executive orders. Pritzker called the lawsuit from State Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, a “cheap political stunt” that would endanger lives should it be expanded to include everyone in the state. He’s appealing that ruling to the state Supreme Court.
State Rep. John Cabello, R-Machesney Park, followed suit, filing a legal challenge on behalf of everyone in the state.
Pritzker this afternoon said the stay-at-home order, which has prevented religious gatherings, was still necessary to continue to fight the pandemic. “Nobody’s going to run in and break up a gathering of churchgoers at that moment, but I will tell you that there are consequences,” Pritzker said. “The state has the authority to enforce orders. But we’ve been looking to people to do the right thing.”
— Tony Arnold
9:21 a.m. Most Latinos fear they won’t be able to cover basic expenses as the pandemic continues, poll finds
Two new polls released this week provide a deeper look at how Latino households are struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nationwide, 22% of all Latino adults know someone who is sick with coronavirus, according to the Somos — COVID-19 Crisis National Latino Survey, a national poll conducted in April. About 86% of respondents said they were concerned that their local hospitals wouldn’t have enough supplies, and about 20% said they have lost their employer-provided health insurance.
More than three-fourths of respondents said they feared that they won’t be able to pay for rent or other basic expenses as the pandemic continues, and a third reported having lost a significant portion of their savings and retirement.
Read the full story.
— María Ines Zamudio
April 29
5:52 p.m. Lenders and landlords pledge to support struggling renters and building owners
More than a dozen lenders as well as groups representing realtors, landlords and tenants have committed to the Chicago Housing Solidarity Pledge, city officials announced today.
The pledge involves offering grace periods and waiving fees for late or missed rent and mortgage payments; allowing renters to pay delinquent rent over time; and suspending foreclosure filings and the reporting of late payments to credit reporting agencies until May 31.
“It’s a rare day when you see renter advocacy groups, building owners and lenders are standing on the same side of an issue,” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said at a press conference announcing the pledge.
The lenders and groups who’ve committed to the pledge include Bank of America, BMO Harris Bank, Byline Bank, CIBC, Fifth Third Bank, First Eagle Bank, First Midwest Bank, Northern Trust Bank, PNC, US Bank, Wintrust Bank, Second Federal Credit Union, Seaway Credit Union, Lawyers Committee for Better Housing, Chicagoland Apartment Association, Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance and Chicago Association of REALTORS.
— Natalie Moore
2:51 p.m. Illinois exceeds 50,000 identified COVID-19 cases
Illinois public health officials today announced 92 new deaths related to COVID-19 and 2,253 new cases of the virus.
That brings Illinois’ total number of cases to 50,355, including 2,215 deaths.
Part of the climbing case count in recent days, health officials say, is due to an uptick in Illinois’ COVID-19 testing capacity. All told, Illinois has run 256,667 tests, with 14,478 of those in the past 24 hours.
About 5,036 people were in hospitals in Illinois for COVID-19, with 1,290 of them in the ICU and 777 on ventilators, Dr. Ngozi Ezike said today.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
12:22 p.m. Another Republican lawmaker sues to halt Illinois’ stay-at-home order
Another Illinois Republican lawmaker is suing Democratic Governor JB Pritzker over his stay-at-home orders meant to slow the spread of COVID-19.
State Rep. John Cabello, R-Machesney Park, sued the governor today in Winnebago County. Cabello tells WBEZ his lawsuit is meant to apply to everyone in the state, not only himself.
It comes after a downstate judge ruled against Pritzker’s order earlier this week, exempting a different GOP state representative from the stay-at-home order. That exemption, however, only applied to the lawmaker who filed the suit.
“I’m trying to show and prove that this is not political,” Cabello said. “This is not a stunt. This is giving the governor an opportunity to do what’s right.”
Read the full story.
— Tony Arnold and Dave McKinney
7:35 a.m. Northwestern turning down federal coronavirus aid
Northwestern University is rejecting $8.5 million allocated to the university in the federal government’s coronavirus relief package. This follows other prestigious universities that have come under criticism for accepting taxpayer dollars while boasting large endowments.
“After careful consideration, Northwestern University determined we are unable to accept the requirements and evolving guidance regarding the CARES Act,” said spokesman Jon Yates. “Therefore, the university has decided not to apply for or receive the funds allocated to us.”
Yates would not elaborate when asked which guidance or requirements he was referencing.
Officials at other universities, including Harvard, Yale and Princeton, said they rejected the funds so smaller colleges and universities could benefit. Northwestern did not mention that issue. A spokesperson for the University of Chicago last night said leaders are continuing to evaluate whether to accept funds.
The federal government set aside $14 billion for colleges and universities, instructing them to use half for financial aid grants for students, excluding international and undocumented students. The rest could be used to manage costs associated with the COVID-19 shutdown.
— Kate McGee
April 28
3:58 p.m. West Side hospital sues over slow reimbursements during the pandemic
Saint Anthony Hospital, a century-old, West Side fixture for poor and uninsured people, is suing the director of the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services for at least $22 million as it grapples with treating COVID-19 patients.
Theresa Eagleson runs HFS, which oversees the state’s Medicaid health insurance program for low-income and disabled people. In its lawsuit, Saint Anthony said the hospital has less than two days of cash on hand — less than $500,000. That’s because HFS and private health insurers the state has contracts with are slow to pay back Saint Anthony for medical care its doctors provide. Sometimes, the hospital doesn’t get paid at all.
In a statement, an HFS spokesman said Saint Anthony has not provided the state information that proves the hospital is owed money.
“The COVID-19 pandemic makes our situation more urgent because the community we serve is a hotspot within a hotspot,” Saint Anthony CEO Guy Medaglia said in a statement. “That has put even greater demands on the hospital.”
Illinois Gov. JB Prizker’s predecessor, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, largely privatized Medicaid. Hospitals have complained ever since that insurers delay payments and refuse to pay others.
— Kristen Schorsch
2:57 p.m. Pritzker says stay-at-home order remains in place as Illinois’ death toll surpasses 2,000
Gov. JB Pritzker again said today that the state is appealing a ruling made in downstate Illinois that granted a temporary restraining order against his stay-at-home order, emphasizing that the judge’s decision applied only to one person — the Republican state representative who filed the suit.
Pritzker called the suit a “cheap political stunt,” designed to garner media coverage for Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia. But the Democratic governor said Illinois officials are nonetheless taking the case seriously, lest it establish a precedent that would prompt other people to file suits against the state to avoid complying with aspects of its stay-at-home order.
Despite the Clay County judge’s decision, the stay-at-home order remains in place across the state, Pritzker said.
Pritzker’s comments came on the worst day so far for deaths from COVID-19, with 144 additional deaths, according to Illinois public health officials, and 2,219 new cases identified. That brings a total of 2,125 deaths and 48,102 total cases.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
1:15 p.m. Chicago is giving out small business grants in a lottery
The city of Chicago says it will give 1,000 small businesses $5,000 grants by May 11.Applications open today and will be accepted until May 4.
The money is aimed at businesses in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods with fewer than five employees and annual revenue less than $250,000. The grants will be given out via a lottery.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot says the program is funded by philanthropic donations collected by the Chicago Community Trust and the One Chicago Fund.
— Becky Vevea
7:20 a.m. Boeing CEO sees years of recovery ahead for aviation industry
David Calhoun, the CEO of Chicago-based Boeing, is painting a dire picture of the air travel industry, telling shareholders in a virtual annual meeting yesterday that it may take several years for commercial airlines to recover from the huge drop-off caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
That means Boeing will need to borrow more money to stay afloat, and significant job and production cuts could be coming to the company’s airplane manufacturing plants.
Read the full story.
— NPR
April 27
4:30 p.m. Pritzker reacts to reports downstate judge rules against stay-at-home order
Gov. JB Pritzker reacted to media reports that a judge in downstate Clay County has for now sided with Illinois Rep. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), who sued the governor for extending his stay-at-home order.
Bailey’s suit claimed the governor’s orders for extensions were a violation of his own constitutional rights, according to the suit, and he asked for the courts to prevent the governor’s extensions from applying to him. It was unclear what impact the Clay County judge’s order would have on the rest of the state. A television reporter for Downstate WCIA tweeted that the judge set a status hearing in one week.
Pritzker called the suit and the reported ruling an “insult to all Illinoisians who have been lost during this COVID-19 crisis and it’s a danger to millions of people who may get ill because of his recklessness.”
“At best no one is better off because of this ruling, and at worst people’s health and safety will suffer tremendously,” he said.
Pritzker said that the state, including the attorney general, would be seeking immediately to get the ruling overturned.
3:00 p.m. Pritzker defends Illinois from Trump tweet as state exceeds 45,000 cases
Illinois public health officials announced 50 more people have died of COVID-19, and 1,980 new cases of the coronavirus disease have been identified in the state, bringing the total number of deaths to 1,983 and total number of cases identified to 45,883.
The state also reported gathering 12,676 specimens for testing over the past 24 hours, with a cumulative total of 227,628 collected since the pandemic began.
Gov. JB Pritzker at his daily briefing talked about how the virus has hit some downstate counties harder per capita than the Chicago area, naming Jasper and Monroe counties as suffering worse.
Pritzker also reacted to President Donald Trump’s criticism of Illinois, again, on Twitter for seeking out federal assistance because of COVID-19, saying Illinois already contributes more in tax dollars to the federal government than it receives, and that it is actually Illinois that bails out other states.
“All states need it now because [the virus] has blown a hole in every state budget,” Pritkzer said.
— Angela Rozas O’Toole
12:10 p.m. U of I will decide by mid-June on in-person classes for the fall
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign said it is planning for in-person classes for the fall, but it won’t make a decision on whether to reopen until mid-June.
“We are not pushing for face-to-face classes if that’s not in the best interest of students and their health and safety,” said Andy Borst, director of undergraduate admissions.
The university has been closed for in-person classes since March and is now running classes online. Borst said a faculty committee is studying the question of re-opening and will make a recommendation by mid-June.
In a letter to admitted students last week, the university shared this news as well other updates. It said the deadline to accept an admissions offer remains May 1 but said students can ask for extension. It also said students have until mid-August to request an admission deferral for one or two semesters.
However, if a student takes classes elsewhere during a deferral, their spot at U of I will not be held. This is a long-standing policy, Borst said. The university also urged admitted students whose financial situation has changed to provide updated information so the school can determine if more aid is needed.
— Kate Grossman
7:01 a.m. South Side leaders: We need Walgreens virus testing site
Deerfield-based Walgreens is opening 15 new COVID-19 testing centers in “hot spot markets” in Illinois and other states. Some elected officials from Chicago’s South Side say one of those centers should be in their area.
They argue there’s evidence that African Americans are suffering disproportionately during the pandemic, including much higher mortality rates compared with other groups. Walgreens says it’s testing locations are being selected in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as well as state and local officials.
Read the full story.
— Dan Mihalopoulos
WBEZ’s blog to cover the coronavirus outbreak in Illinois went live on Jan. 24. Read earlier updates here.
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