Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration is set to unveil a plan later this week that will more gradually move the state from current coronavirus restrictions to a full reopening, officials said Monday.
Illinois is now in the fourth phase of the governor’s reopening plan, as it was over the summer before the fall resurgence of the pandemic, with limits on crowds and indoor dining. In the next phase of the governor’s plan, “all sectors of the economy reopen” and “conventions, festivals, and large events can take place.”
But, Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Ngozi Ezike noted, “We’re not getting rid of masks. We think masks have to continue to be a mainstay.”
Meanwhile, an average of 102,147 coronavirus vaccine doses were administered daily over the last week in Illinois, officials reported Monday, while 62,508 coronavirus vaccinations were administered Sunday, bringing the statewide total to 4,102,810.
Additionally, several hundred people from at least nine school districts gathered in Naperville on Sunday to demand they be given the option of returning their children to classrooms full time five days a week.
And Chicago Public Schools parents of high school students have until Friday to say yes or no to in-person learning, but they still don’t know exactly what those options mean or when their students might finally get the chance to return after a year of remote instruction. Here are some answers to common questions for parents.
Here’s what’s happening Monday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
5 p.m.: Tracking COVID-19 in CPS schools: Look up your school
In the two weeks since tens of thousands of students began returning to the classroom in Chicago Public Schools, more than a dozen pods of students have been placed in quarantine as a small number of isolated cases of the coronavirus have been identified.
Since March 2020, a period when schools were mostly closed to students and operated with smaller-than-normal staffs, officials have tracked a total of 984 confirmed COVID-19 cases — 939 adults and 45 students — associated with CPS buildings, according to the district’s online tracker.
How many of those have been reported in the past two weeks? And is there evidence of coronavirus being passed in schools? To read more and look up your school, click here. —Karen Ann Cullotta and Jonathon Berlin
4:30 p.m.: Survey about COVID-19 vaccine finds 45% of African Americans, 35% of Latinos in Cook County have doubts about vaccination, prompting campaign to encourage people to get the shot
Cook County officials Monday kicked off a new outreach campaign to encourage residents to get the vaccine after a survey found that 46% of African Americans and 35% of Latinos in the county have doubts about getting a COVID-19 vaccine.
The “My Shot” campaign will feature county residents sharing their experience after getting the vaccine and the reason why they chose to get it, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said during a news conference Monday morning at Proviso Missionary Baptist Church in Maywood that was streamed online.
According to a survey conducted in January and February whose data were used to craft the campaign, 32% of Cook County adults are hesitant about coronavirus vaccines, with the largest hesitancy in those 18 to 34 years old. Of those surveyed, 46% of African Americans and 35% of Latinos in the county said they probably will not, definitely not or are not sure whether they will get a vaccine.
Most cited concerns about the side effects of the vaccines.
4:25 p.m.: CVS starts administering COVID-19 vaccine at eight Illinois pharmacies
CVS Health has started administering COVID-19 vaccines at eight stores in Illinois, including one Chicago.
The doses going to CVS are part of the federal retail pharmacy program, which supplies vaccines directly from the federal government to 21 pharmacy chains and networks, including Walgreens, Jewel-Osco, Walmart, Mariano’s and CVS.
CVS said Monday it won’t be releasing the addresses of pharmacies giving out the vaccine because it does not want to overwhelm those locations with people seeking a dose without making an appointment.
In addition to the Chicago store, CVS is administering the Pfizer vaccine at stores in Olympia Fields and Flossmoor in south suburban Cook County, Kankakee, Mendota, Hoopeston, Pekin and Belleville.
CVS is only taking registrations from eligible priority groups, including people older than 65, K-12 teachers and staff, child care workers and essential public-facing workers.
3:38 p.m.: Gov. J.B. Pritzker set to lay out additional steps before full reopening of Illinois — but Dr. Ngozi Ezike says ‘we’re not getting rid of masks’
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration is set to unveil a plan later this week that will more gradually move the state from current coronavirus restrictions to a full reopening, officials said Monday.
Illinois is now in the fourth phase of the governor’s reopening plan, as it was over the summer before the fall resurgence of the pandemic, with limits on crowds and indoor dining. In the next phase of the governor’s plan, “all sectors of the economy reopen” and “conventions, festivals, and large events can take place.”
But at a state Senate Health Committee meeting Monday, Illinois Department of Public Health director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said to get “from where we are now to phase five, (is) maybe not just an on-off switch but a dial, so there may be one more phase.”
3:04 p.m.: Community leaders address how to get more vaccinations to brown and Black Chicagoans
As Illinois continues to increase COVID-19 vaccination numbers (statewide vaccinations have reached 4.1 million as of Sunday), state and local leaders continue to grapple with how to make sure those in Chicago’s hardest-hit communities get vaccinated. They want to make sure people in Chicago’s brown and Black communities, who have suffered disproportionately from COVID-19, have access to vaccines. And they want to ensure the vaccine distribution process is equitable.
Chicago Tribune reporters Lisa Schencker and Darcel Rockett spoke with community leader Arturo Carrillo, Brighton Park Neighborhood Council’s director of health and violence prevention; Rev. Brian E. Smith, director of advancement and strategic partnerships at the Chicago Theological Seminary, and Dr. Maya Green, Howard Brown Health’s regional medical director for the South and West sides. All three community leaders are familiar with the challenges facing people of color and spoke about vaccine equity, access and outreach during a Facebook Live event on Monday.
As far as hesitancy when it comes to taking the vaccine, Smith said Black people are not against being vaccinated. Rather they’re concerned about being victimized, given the U.S.’s long history of racism in medicine.
Green agreed citing the language around Black and brown communities’ mistrust should change to one of the medical system has had a lack of trustworthiness towards communities of color. Green said conversations about vaccine hesitancy must respect that history and seek solutions from Black and brown communities.
”That conversation cannot look like me, as the doctor, trying to come in and educate,” Green said. “I have to come in and listen because our communities of color are brilliant. They’re already educated from history.”
There’s a difference between equality and equity, Smith said. Equality is treating everyone equally, but equity is treating people according to their specific needs, and that’s what’s needed given disparities between white communities and those of color, he said. Smith said he’s been working with leaders of other congregations to share ideas and information. And he’s been asking members of his congregation to testify about their experiences when they get vaccinations.
”This is very important in terms of helping people to feel comfortable with the process and help them deal with the fears they may have regarding the vaccine,” Smith said.
Carrillo said a lack of better planning, for the vaccine rollout, is partly to blame for disparities between white people and people of color.
”We knew there was going to be a moment where the vaccine was going to roll out and, unfortunately, our city government hadn’t planned as intentionally as they should have to ensure the infrastructure was there in these communities … the moment these vaccines rolled out,” Carrillo said.
Carrillo added a lot of the concerns he’s seeing in the community are based on legitimate questions, such as whether it’s OK for pregnant women to get vaccinated. His group and other nonprofits have been trying to address those questions and dispel myths by providing information in Spanish and through social media.
Howard Brown has also held Spanish-language events on vaccinations, Green said.
—Lisa Schencker and Darcel Rockett
1:58 p.m.: COVID-19 vaccines for children: When can kids get shots? Do they even need them?
Children have fared better than adults in the coronavirus pandemic, a fact that makes the development of vaccines for them a unique effort in the annals of medical science.
Historically, pediatric vaccines have focused on killer childhood diseases, but the pandemic has thrown a curve into that thinking. While the virus has been a deadly force among older adults, it’s been shown to be mild in the young.
That’s sparked an emerging debate among scientists about how critical it is that children be immunized. Some say the case for inoculating kids is less pressing, given that their outcomes tend to be so much better. Worldwide, the rollout of vaccines has prioritized older people and others at risk because of their health or occupation.
1:14 p.m.: A day of free sandwiches? If Manny’s Deli gets 30 days of perfect mask wearing, apparently so.
Manny’s Cafeteria & Delicatessen is staking a mountain of free corned beef — and pastrami and salami and, yes, even turkey if you must — on keeping that mask on at the legendary South Loop restaurant.
The 79-year-old institution that has been a backdrop for generations of politicians, celebrities and those of us simply in search of a quality corned beef on rye, announced on social media Sunday night that it would “give away free sandwiches for the day” if staff could go 30 days without needing to remind customers to mask up during the COVID-19 pandemic.
12:11 p.m.: 782 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 12 additional deaths reported
Illinois health officials on Monday announced 782 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 12 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 1,210,113 and the statewide death toll to 20,955 since the start of the pandemic.
Officials also reported 39,145 new tests in the last 24 hours. The statewide positivity rate for cases is 2.2%.
The 7-day daily average of administered vaccine doses is 102,147, the highest so far, with 62,508 doses given on Sunday. Officials also say a total of 4,102,810 vaccines have now been administered.
—Chicago Tribune staff
11:56 a.m.: The COVID-19 pandemic devastated many small businesses. It also sparked a surge in new ones. ‘I just felt like this was the time.’
The coronavirus pandemic has been brutal for many small business owners.
Retail shops, gyms and bars closed for months, while restaurants struggled to subsist on takeout.
But even as many business owners closed their doors for good, others saw opportunities to start something new.
Five Chicagoans from across the city share what it was like to launch a company during the pandemic.
8:14 a.m.: Lake Theatre in downtown Oak Park hoping for mid-April opening
As COVID-19 numbers decrease and more people become vaccinated, the owners of the Lake Theatre in downtown Oak Park say they are planning to reopen to patrons by mid-April.
The theater, which has been closed for nearly one year, hopes to welcome back moviegoers on April 15.
”We think a combination of vaccinations, the reduced spread of the virus and the firming up of the movie release schedule all kind of coincide,” said Chris Johnson, CEO of Classic Cinemas, which owns Lake Theatre.
While he could possibly reopen sooner, Johnson said he is preferring to play it safe and wait until next month to continue to monitor metrics and await state guidance on capacity.
Currently, theaters are limited to the lesser of 50% capacity or 50 people. Johnson is hopeful even more capacity will be allowed in the near future.
6 a.m.: COVID-19 cancels spring break on college campuses as students seek other ways to cope with pandemic burnout
Like many schools across the country, Southern Illinois University canceled its traditional weeklong spring break to limit travel during the coronavirus pandemic. Other colleges are either shortening the break or advising students to stay put — one is even offering students $75 gift cards to remain on campus during the recess.
But the prospect of a nonstop semester can be daunting for stressed-out young adults, especially after a tumultuous year of online learning and social isolation. As professors and students raise concerns about mental health, some colleges eliminating break have added single non-instruction days to break up the term. Still, there are typically fewer vacation days this semester.
At SIU, the spring term started a week later than normal and an optional “spirit week” is scheduled to run through Saturday, while classes will continue. The spirit week will include activities such as bingo, crate stacking and painting to provide “a fun springtime respite,” according to a spokeswoman. Students can also claim free apparel that says, “I lost my spring break and all I got was this T-shirt.”
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has also nixed its normal spring break. The faculty senate in October approved the schedule change, which pushed back the start of spring semester to allow for entry testing after the winter holidays and added three “non-instruction days.” Professors could not schedule exams, assignment due dates or class meetings on the non-instruction days of Feb. 17, March 24 and April 13.
“Without a week-long spring break this semester and given the heightened stress associated with the ongoing pandemic, it is critically important to our students’ wellness to honor these non-instruction days,” Provost Andreas Cangellaris said in an online message.
6 a.m.: Pandemic prompts state to offer break on overdue traffic fines and other fees for low-income residents
Low-income Illinois residents who owe outstanding fines or fees in Chicago and many suburbs won’t have the money taken out of their state income tax returns this year under a one-year deferral program Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza and Mayor Lori Lightfoot plan to announce Monday.
The program is expected to affect about 41,000 people, said Abdon Pallasch, a spokesman for Mendoza.
“This year, given all the hardships that COVID has brought on, we thought it appropriate to bring this relief to the working poor,” he said. “The fines and fees do impact the working poor harder than other tax filers.”
Outstanding fines and fees will not be wiped off the books, however. The comptroller’s office will collect them when the program ends.
5 a.m.: River North bar cited for COVID-19 violations during weekend celebrations for St. Patrick’s Day
City investigators cited one River North restaurant and bar for violating COVID-19 regulations during St. Patrick’s Day festivities this weekend.
Clutch Bar was cited for operating beyond capacity — with 60 patrons in a space for 50 — and allowing more than six people at a table and spacing tables too close together, according to Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection. The bar, located at 316 W. Erie St., was the only establishment cited as part of the Saturday sweep of bars and restaurants, which included 40 full investigations, with an additional 49 businesses observed.
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