* Mayor Lightfoot went well beyond state rules and strictly limited indoor dining until late September. And now…
Mayor Lori Lightfoot pushed back late Tuesday on Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s order to suspend indoor dining and drinking in Chicago to stop a dramatic surge in coronavirus cases, the latest sign of a serious split between the officials leading the effort to stem the pandemic.
“Communication is the key to navigating through this crisis,” Lightfoot said in a statement to reporters. “We will continue our efforts to engage with the governor and his team to better understand their metrics so that we can forge targeted solutions to address the public health challenges here in Chicago and across the state.”
During an interview Tuesday evening on the “PBS NewsHour,” Lightfoot said she had asked Pritzker to reverse his order.
“If the governor’s order goes into effect, it’s shutting down a significant portion of our economy at a time when those same businesses are hanging on by a thread,” Lightfoot said.
But a clearly angry source close to the governor pushed back on the assertion that Lightfoot was blindsided…
The governor and the mayor were supposed to speak on Monday, but the mayor didn’t call the governor. Staff were briefed on the metrics.
Not to mention that all anyone had to do was look at the numbers and it was pretty crystal clear what was about to happen for days in advance.
Lightfoot immediately pushed back on that assertion.
“The mayor reached out on Monday to the governor” to schedule a meeting to talk about COVID and the state’s plans, said spokeswoman Jordan Troy. “The governor was traveling, so they didn’t talk but to accommodate the governor’s schedule a meeting was set for tomorrow (Wednesday). ” As a result, “There was no need for another talk.”
Team Pritzker is sticking with its story that Lightfoot was the one who was supposed to have called to finalize a time to talk. “The governor has been publicly warning for days about Chicago’s troubling numbers,” said the senior Pritzker aide.
…Adding… Hannah makes a very valid point…
The metrics have been the metrics since they were released on July 15. Tier I mitigations were tightened to include closing indoor dining/bar service on August 24. So these have been the mitigations for more than two months, and the metrics have been the metrics for >3 months. https://t.co/5ra6oBGxjT
* WIND’s Amy Jacobson prefaced her question at the governor’s press conference today with a short speech on bar owners who don’t trust the state’s science. And then she claimed that “people in each county want the breakouts for each county” for contact tracing to see the info for themselves. Gov. Pritzker said counties are required to publish that information and said the state was working on aggregating it in one place. He then gave a short speech of his own to the far-right talk radio host…
I would just say back to you, Amy, that, you know, I would appreciate it if you would spend a little more time promoting people wearing masks, promoting people doing the right thing in this very difficult time when people are dying and getting sick, and a little less time sort of ginning up the idea that this is a hoax or giving people a platform for the idea that this is some sort of conspiracy. I just want to point out every day - no, you asked question after question, let me answer you - question after question is always about trying to find some thing that might have been done wrong along the way. And the reality is we’re all trying very hard to get this right. All across the country, every state is fighting this right now. Can you not see that? COVID is rising everywhere. Let’s not try to find the loopholes here and there, but instead find ways that we can promote safety and health.
* That ain’t her job, but check out the response from the station…
The Piatt County board will consider a balanced budget at a special meeting Wednesday morning, one that relies on $218,000 in federal pandemic aid and a new $250,000 tort levy to boost revenues. As approved by the county board finance committee on Oct. 23, it also trims the local health department levy by $50,000 in order to help the struggling county corporate general fund. […]
As for the levy cut for the DeWitt/Piatt Bi-County Health Department, Director David Remmert said it could actually result in a $100,000 revenue hit for his agency.
“Our budget is based on an agreement developed years ago between the two counties that ties the two tax levies we receive together, so what happens in Piatt also has to happen in DeWitt. I don’t believe the board or the fiscal consultant they’ve brought in understand the predicament that leaves us in, and I’m hopeful they will discuss this further,” he said.
The levy adjustment was made after the committee decided on the balanced version of the budget, added back in $30,000 for a sheriff’s police car, and figured in 2 percent raises for employees not covered by collective bargaining agreements.
Unreal.
The state needs to redo the entire local public health system’s structure.
Governor JB Pritzker and IDPH announced updated guidance for youth and adult recreational sports, including, but not limited to, school-based sports, travel clubs, private leagues and clubs, recreational leagues and centers, and park district sports programs. Collegiate sports and professional leagues are not impacted by these restrictions. The updated guidance was developed by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) in conjunction with public health experts from around the state and nation and reflects the high levels of risk associated with contact sports played indoors. The guidance also accounts for new research related to COVID-19 and sports, sports related outbreaks in other states, and the fact that the second wave of the pandemic is now well underway in all regions of Illinois.
“We can’t ignore what is happening around us – because without action, this could look worse than anything we saw in the spring.” said Governor JB Pritzker. “It’s with that in mind that today, my administration is releasing our updated guidance for youth and adult recreational sports in Illinois ahead of the winter season. As with sports in the fall, nothing is ‘cancelled,’ just put on hold until we’re through the thick of this pandemic. We adapt as we learn. That has been our mantra throughout this pandemic, and as is true in every other facet of life, we know this virus is of most concern when people are indoors with high contact, especially in vigorous situations that bring about heavy breathing – like in wrestling, hockey and basketball. Life in a pandemic is hard for everyone, and it’s hard for all of our kids, whether or not they play sports. That doesn’t make it any easier – but we really are all in this together.”
The youth sports guidance puts sports into three risk levels, lower, medium, or higher, based on the amount of contact between athletes and their proximity during play. The guidance sets four levels of play allowed based on current public health conditions. In all levels, some form of play is allowed ranging from practice and trainings in level 1 to tournaments and conference play in level 4.
In level 1, only no-contact practices and training are allowed.
In level 2, intra-team scrimmages are allowed with parental consent for minors but there can be no competitive play.
In level 3 intra-conference, intra-EMS-region or intra-league play is allowed and there may be state- or league-championship games allowed for low-risk sports only.
In level 4, tournaments, out-of-conference/league play, and out-of-state play are allowed. Championship games would also be allowed in level 4.
Based on current conditions, lower risk sports can be played at levels 1, 2, and 3. Medium risk sports can be played at levels 1 and 2, and higher risk sports can be played at level 1.
The updated guidance moves basketball from medium risk to high risk due to the close contact of players and indoor play. Wrestling and hockey continue to be categorized as high risk as well. Cheer and dance will be categorized as lower risk, only if masking and distance are enforced. Low risk sports like bowling, gymnastics, swimming and diving will be permitted to play during winter.
“The science, as we know it right now, applies in all situations,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “The more people you are in contact with, the longer you are together, and the closer you are together, the greater your risk of getting COVID-19. Being face to face with another person for a basketball or football game puts players at higher risk of getting and spreading the virus. Right now, cases across Illinois and the country are increasing.”
Similar to other guidance, sports organizations should make temperature checks available and participants and coaches should monitor for symptoms of COVID-19 and should not participate if they are experiencing illness. If multiple individuals have symptoms or test positive, coaches or organizations should alert their local health department. Sports organizers or coaches also must maintain attendance logs of participants for contact tracing purposes. Masks should be worn by everyone in attendance. Spectator limits should follow mitigation occupancy limits in each region. For Tier One mitigation that limits spectators to 25 people or less. For Tier Two mitigations no spectators should be allowed.
Athletic equipment such as bats and hockey sticks should be cleaned between each use. Other equipment, including personal gear such as hockey, football, lacrosse, or other sports using helmets, pads, or gloves should only be used by one person and not shared. Coaches should limit access to locker rooms as much as possible.
Illinois first issued guidelines for youth and recreational sports in late May when every region in the state advanced to Phase 3 of the Restore Illinois plan, marked by return to work, the reopening of retail as well as the return of specific recreational activities. The latest guidelines make adjustments to temporarily halt competitive play for most higher to medium-risk sports pending further health progress, as well as to provide additional clarity on capacity limits and high school sports.
Governor Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) are announcing COVID-19 resurgence mitigations will be implemented in Region 11, the City of Chicago, beginning at 12:01 am on Friday, October 30, 2020. Region 11 has triggered additional mitigations due to a sustained increase in its positivity rate as well as a sustained increase in COVID-related hospitalizations for more than seven of the past ten days. These increases exceed the thresholds set for establishing mitigation measures under the state’s Restore Illinois Resurgence Plan. Region 11 is the second of the state’s 11 regions to trigger additional mitigations based on sustained increases in positivity and hospitalization rates, the first being its neighbor, Region 10 (Suburban Cook County) earlier in the week.
Support for small businesses has been one of the central features of the Pritzker administration’s COVID-19 response. Thus far, nearly $33 million has been distributed in emergency grants and assistance to businesses and communities in Region 11 alone. Chicago businesses, as well as other regions currently under additional mitigations, will receive priority consideration for the current round of Business Interruption Grants (BIG), with $220 million available to help offset costs and losses businesses have incurred as a result of the pandemic.
“Region 11 is now averaging more than twice as many COVID-related hospital admissions per day as it was a month ago, with a positivity rate that has almost doubled since the beginning of October,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “So, starting on Friday the City, too, will begin operating under our resurgence metrics, with a closure of indoor restaurant and bar service and a restrained gathering cap limit of 25 people. We can’t ignore what is happening around us – because without action, this could look worse than anything we saw in the spring. So please, no matter where you live, what your politics are, where you work or who you love: Illinois: mask up! And we’ll get through this together.”
“When the first several regions started implementing mitigation measures, it was because the 7-day rolling test positivity was above 8% for three consecutive days,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “What we are starting to see now, first with suburban Cook County, and now with Chicago, is that mitigation measures are needed because COVID-19 hospital admissions are going up alongside increases in test positivity. Based on current trends, we soon could face reduced hospital bed availability and overwhelming our health care systems. Please, for our health care workers, yourself, and your community, keep distance between you and others, wash your hands, and always wear a mask when around people.”
Mitigation measures taking effect October 30 in Region 11 include:
Bars
No indoor service
All outside bar service closes at 11:00 p.m.
All bar patrons should be seated at tables outside
No ordering, seating, or congregating at bar (bar stools should be removed)
Tables should be 6 feet apart
No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
No dancing or standing indoors
Reservations required for each party
No seating of multiple parties at one table
Restaurants
No indoor dining or bar service
All outdoor dining closes at 11:00 p.m.
Outside dining tables should be 6 feet apart
No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
Reservations required for each party
No seating of multiple parties at one table
Meetings, Social Events, Gatherings
Limit to lesser of 25 guests or 25 percent of overall room capacity
No party buses
Gaming and Casinos close at 11:00 p.m., are limited to 25 percent capacity, and follow mitigations for bars and restaurants, if applicable
These mitigations do not apply to schools or polling places.
From the onset of the pandemic, the administration has worked to prioritize distributing emergency relief for small businesses and communities impacted by COVID-19. Since March, the administration has launched a menu of small business and community relief programs – with over $500 million in grants and programs launched by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), including emergency hospitality grants, a downstate small business stabilization program, Fast Track Capital, and more. For more information on programs available for businesses and communities, please visit DCEO’s website.
In the coming days, IDPH will continue to track metrics in Region 11 to determine if mitigations can be relaxed, if additional mitigations are required, or if current mitigations should remain in place. If the positivity rate in Region 11 averages less than or equal to 6.5% over a three-day period, there is a decrease in hospital admissions for COVID-19 like illness over a three-day period, and the three-day rolling averages of ICU bed availability and medical/surgical bed availability is greater than or equal to 20% over a seven-day period, the region will return to Phase 4 mitigations under the Restore Illinois Plan. Conversely, if the average positivity rate continues to increase over seven out of 10 days and the hospital admissions for COVID-19 like illness continues to increase over seven out of 10 days, more stringent mitigations can be applied. If the metrics remain stable, the region will continue to be monitored.
As of today, including Region 11, seven of the state’s 11 regions have triggered one of the state’s failsafe state-action metric. By tomorrow, Regions 4, 5, 7, 8, and 10 will all operate under Tier 1 mitigation measures given that these regions continue to report a 7-day rolling positivity rate above 8%. Region 1 is currently operating under Tier 2 mitigation measures after continuing to see a rise in positivity even under the Tier 1 mitigation framework, now at a rolling positivity average of 12.5% as of this morning.
As part of the administration’s robust response to the pandemic, the state continues to strengthen its nation-leading testing operation. Testing remains readily available throughout Illinois. Chicago has state-run operations in Auburn Gresham that operate daily, in addition to the multiple free testing locations offered by the City of Chicago. In the past month alone, Regions 10 and 11 each reported an increase of roughly 50 percent in testing. The administration will continue to build upon this progress, given that testing remains a critical step to reduce further spread of the virus in communities. To find the nearest testing center, please visit DPH.Illinois.Gov/Testing.
IDPH will also continue to work closely with the Chicago Public Health Department (CDPH) to provide education to the public and offer information to businesses and organizations on safe ways to operate. The significance of face coverings, social distancing, and hand washing have been consistently emphasized by both the city and the state throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
A full list of mitigation measures pertaining to some businesses and industries may be found on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) website at www.dceocovid19resources.com/restore-illinois.
The city could soon face more restrictions, including the banning of indoor dining and drinking, to try to rein in the coronavirus surge here.
Starting Wednesday, six of Illinois’ 11 regions, including the suburbs in Cook County, will be under what Gov. JB Pritzker has dubbed “enhanced mitigations.” The mitigations include stopping indoor service, limiting gathering sizes and putting an 11 p.m. curfew on bars and restaurants.
Chicago, where cases and the positivity rate have skyrocketed in recent weeks, is well on its way to tripping the same metrics that will lead to those stricter rules.
Officials will take action if they see an increase in a region’s seven-day average positivity rate for seven days out of 10, as well as one of these indicators:
A seven-day increase in hospital admissions for a coronavirus-like illness.
A reduction in hospital capacity that would threaten the area’s surge capabilities
Three consecutive days where a region averaged a positivity rate of 8 percent or higher.
According to IDPH, the city has now reached the seven-day increase in hospital admissions mark. Daily hospital admissions for coronavirus-like illness increased by 43 percent in that week.
In suburban Cook, daily hospital admissions for coronavirus-like illness increased by 58 percent in a week. That is not a trend anyone wants.
* Meanwhile…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 4,000 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 46 additional deaths.
- Adams County: 1 female 70s
- Carroll County: 1 male 90s
- Clinton County: 1male 60s, 1 male 80s
- Coles County: 1 female 90s
- Cook County: 1 male 60s, 2 females 70s, 1 male 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
- DuPage County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
- Jefferson County: 1 female 90s
- Jo Daviess County: 2 females 90s
- Kane County: 1 male 80s
- Knox County: 1 female 70s, 1 female 90s, 1 male 90s
- LaSalle County: 2 female 80s
- Macon County: 1 female 70s
- Madison County: 1 female 80s
- Mason County: 1 female 70s, 1 male 70s, 1 female 90s, 1 male 90s
- McLean County: 1 male 60s, 1 female 90s
- Moultrie County: 1 female 50s
- Pike County: 1 female 70s
- Richland County: 2 females 90s
- Rock Island County: 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
- St. Clair County: 1 male 70s
- Vermilion County: 1 male 70s
- Warren County: 1 male 60s
- Wayne County: 1 male 90s
- Whiteside County: 1 female 80s
- Will County: 1 female 70s, 1 male 80s
- Williamson County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
- Woodford County: 1 male 90s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 382,985 cases, including 9,568 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from October 20 – October 26 is 6.4%. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 62,074 specimens for a total 7,388,290. As of last night, 2,758 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 595 patients were in the ICU and 241 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in real-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered. For health questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
*** UPDATE 1 *** As noted by a commenter, Region 3, which includes Springfield, just hit an average 8 percent positivity rate. Two more days in a row of this will trigger mitigation.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Region 10 is suburban Cook County. From IDPH…
Amazon has been quietly cutting such deals in and around Chicago since 2015, winning tax breaks and public incentives to build 36 warehouses as part of its nationwide effort to expand its own distribution system, cut its dependence on rival shippers like the U.S. Postal Service and bolster its famous promises of next-day delivery.
To help pay for its vast expansion, the company and its developers have won at least $741 million in taxpayer-funded incentives in northeast Illinois alone, according to a Better Government Association/WBEZ investigation.
An examination of public records from more than two dozen municipalities provides new details in Amazon’s six-year effort, revealing a patchwork of nondisclosure agreements, a lack of transparency during negotiations and suburbs pitted against each other to secure the most favorable deal.
The BGA/WBEZ analysis found the company received far more tax breaks from communities of color — like University Park.
Amazon collected less than $100 million in public incentives for the 15 warehouses it built in predominantly white communities but won more than $640 million in taxpayer incentives for the 21 projects built in communities with larger nonwhite populations, the examination found. Many of those communities are either mostly Black, mostly Latinx or have higher concentrations of low-income residents, and with municipal budgets already short on cash.
Records show the three largest incentive packages Amazon received — totaling $512 million — all came from predominantly Black suburbs. By contrast, the company built warehouses in at least seven mostly white communities that reported offering no public incentives at all.
* Rep. Darren Bailey as interviewed by Jim Meadows…
“I believe wholeheartedly that Gov. Pritzker is trying to destroy the economy of Illinois,” said Bailey. “He’s trying to wreck it, so he can bring us to an early bankruptcy, whatever that looks like, so that he, hoping for a Biden presidency, will possibly receive a complete federal bailout, as well with many other states. We cannot let that happen.”
Bailey also said COVID-19 is “much like the flu.” Except, of course, there’s a vaccine for influenza. And he complained that nursing homes are being “locked down,” which is odd.
* He’s not the only one who claims that Pritzker is deliberately trying to “wreck” the economy. From my weekly syndicated newspaper column…
Even so, Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) complained during a House Republican campaign press conference last week about the state mitigation measures which will soon be imposed on her home county of DuPage, claiming that “we do not have the same type of crisis scenario that we did back in March.”
Scientists knew very little about the virus in March, so people didn’t know quite what to do. Also, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has said over and over that he has zero plans to impose another sweeping stay-at-home order, which shut down a gigantic swath of an already mostly self-shuttered economy beginning in March.
The new mitigations apply mainly to bars and restaurants, closing indoor service and limiting hours. There is really no comparison between these mitigations and what was imposed in March. Remember when you couldn’t get a haircut, or visit the doctor for a routine checkup, have a cavity filled or hang out with a friend? This is most definitely not that.
Mazzochi went on to declare that the governor is “perfectly happy to wreck what’s going on in DuPage.”
Kane County judge Kevin Busch on Monday granted a temporary restraining order to prevent Gov. JB Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Kane County Health Department from enforcing an indoor dining ban at FoxFire restaurant in Geneva. […]
“There is no question that a person’s ability to pursue their calling, to earn a living and to run a business is a protectable right under both the federal and state constitution and is inherent in everyone’s natural right to liberty,” Busch said, in issuing his opinion. “The state’s ability to deprive people of their life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness is tempered by due process.” […]
Busch agreed with the suit’s contention that Pritzker exceeded the 30-day emergency powers granted to him. In March, he issued a disaster proclamation because of COVID-19. […]
“The crowds at our local food stores are much greater than the crowds that can, and I expect do, populate our local restaurants, including FoxFire,” he said. “I note that in our community that every one of the big box stores is open. And again, the crowds that populate these stores are significantly greater than the crowds that populate are local restaurants, including those like FoxFire. And the court cannot turn a blind eye to these facts. If there was such a compelling public need to shut down businesses for public health, then how did we pick the winners and losers?”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dining at bars and restaurants is closely linked to the spread of the virus in many communities. Adults who tested positive for the virus were approximately twice as likely to have reported dining at a restaurant than those with negative test results, according to a CDC study published in September. Experts now believe the coronavirus is airborne, and tiny droplets containing the virus can linger indoors for hours as aerosols, making indoor dining especially risky since diners can’t wear masks while eating.
* Maybe if the state had been allowed to brief the case, the judge would’ve had some answers. From the governor’s office…
The administration is disappointed the court has ruled against public health protections that keep people safe. This decision was made without briefing and is contrary to how many other Illinois state and federal courts have ruled on this matter. Positivity rates and hospitalizations are rising across the state; this public health crisis is not over. The administration will review the court’s order and determine the appropriate next steps.
From the attorney general’s office…
With 9,522 lives lost and half the counties in Illinois now at the Illinois Department of Public Health’s warning level, the need for these lifesaving measures could not be more evident. As we have argued successfully in other Illinois courts that have considered these issues, the governor’s constitutional and statutory authority to protect Illinois residents during the pandemic is clear. We are committed to continuing to defend the well-reasoned measures being implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 throughout Illinois, particularly as the numbers of positive cases and hospitalizations once again increase.
(T)he [Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act] does not authorize Gov. Pritzker to declare a “disaster” to manage an existing “disaster” for an additional thirty (30) days, and certainly not ad nauseum.
“The state has argued that there’s nothing in the Emergency Management Act that suggests that the governor couldn’t issue then successive proclamations,” Busch said. “And while that is certainly true, there’s nothing in the act that suggests he can.”
* From an Illinois Supreme Court order issued today…
Illinois has been in a state of emergency since Governor Pritzker’s declaration on March 9, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitating temporary court-imposed restrictions to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on the court system, while continuing to provide access to justice.
That could be a pretty good hint at where the high court is going here.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The attorney general’s office has asked 2nd Appellate District to hear its appeal of the TRO. Click here. The AG also filed this document with Judge Busch. Worth a read.
* Sorry for coming a bit late to this, but here’s The Hill…
Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.), the head of House Democrats’ campaign arm, is facing an increasingly competitive reelection bid to represent Illinois’ 17th District.
Bustos, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), represents a congressional district that then-candidate Donald Trump narrowly won in 2016. And while she trounced her GOP competitor in 2018, winning by more than 24 percentage points, Bustos is now facing what may be her most expensive and heated battle yet against GOP candidate Esther Joy King.
The Cook Political Report on Wednesday moved Bustos’ race against King from likely Democrat to a lean Democrat district. And internal GOP polling has also elevated Republican hopes that they can win the seat from the woman leading the House Democrats’ campaign effort.
Bustos, in a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday, projected confidence heading into the final stretch, while also acknowledging that she has always expected tough races with her Trump-leaning district.
“We are well prepared to finish strong and I live the advice that I give to all of our frontliners and red to blue candidates, which is run your race like you’re running for mayor…everything is hyperlocal,” Bustos said in part. “You show up, you listen, you fight for the people at home, and everything you do is for the people you represent.”
Asked why the race was tightening, Bustos said it is a “Trump district” and noted that her campaign has had to figure out ways to campaign in her district’s 14 counties amid the pandemic.
It’s more of a swing district at the very top. President Trump won it by less than a point, about the same as Gov. Pritzker won it two years ago. The Republicans think they caught her napping. We’ll see.
“[H]er opponent, who supports the lawsuit that would raise health care costs and take away protections for people with preexisting conditions, just moved to the district from Chicago right before filing to run for Congress,” said Bustos campaign manager Tom Bryant. […]
Some reports have also raised questions about King’s claims about starting various social media and media-focused companies, which have little presence online. King, in response, has blasted Bustos for the scrutiny, claiming she is attempting to distract from her record representing the district.
“This is what Washington politicians like Cheri Bustos do when voters have had enough of them - they attack and distort their opponent’s record as a distraction from the fact that Bustos is helping create jobs in China, not here Illinois,” King said.
King’s campaign has also dismissed accusations of being a carpetbagger, noting she moved for military training and opted to remain in the area. […]
King and other GOP critics, meanwhile, are claiming that Bustos is absent from the district, which is helping her campaign gain traction.
A King-commissioned poll conducted by the Tarrance Group of 418 17th District voters Oct. 10-12 put Bustos at 49% and King at 44%, with 7% saying they were still undecided. Seventy percent of th0se polled recognized King’s name.
The King campaign and pollster declined to release the full polling data, or provide additional information about the results on the record.
Wasserman said Bustos became chairwoman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in part because she proved she can pull off Democratic victories in more conservative districts through her own success, but said that role also opens her up to attacks linking her closely to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Maxwell: All right. Also this: I think this is your first time running for public office. Correct me if I’m wrong, a political newcomer, but not your first time in government. I noticed on your resume, you worked for Governor Rauner for a short stint. That was back in his early days, but didn’t last too long. What happened there? Why’d you leave? How’d you like it?
King: Yeah. Well, what I loved, Mark, about working for the state of Illinois as Director of Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Technology is I got to be around business owners. I got to be around entrepreneurs and it was my job to help grow and promote the business community of Illinois, which is actually exactly what I’m excited to be doing as Representative. Our business owners need help right now, Mark. We absolutely need support during this time of pandemic. For example, there’s a section of the Illinois 17th that has been rolled back, and business owners are like, “We can’t shut down again, Esther. We’re not going to make it through. And so getting them support is actually really critical, Mark, and what we’ve seen from Congress, whose job it is to help pass a stimulus package… I mean, talk about some political game playing. What Nancy Pelosi is doing right now in her left hand lieutenant Cheri Bustos, my opponent, she is preventing support coming directly to these businesses that are desperate that need help right now. And that’s what’s important. And that’s what this is about, is bringing better representation to the Illinois 17th Congressional District.
Maxwell: You were there in that job with the state for in just a little over a year. Why’d you leave?
King: It was a decision that was, came from the, the administration. We did not agree on the methodology and some of the values that were being placed and we split ways.
Maxwell: How would you grade Governor Rauner’s time in office?
King: That’s not relevant to this election. What is important is Cheri Bustos’ time in an office. She has been in office for eight years. During her time in office, she’s only authored three bills, three bills renaming three post offices. That’s all we’ve gotten in eight years. Come on, now. We deserve better than that.
Our reporting this week has been met with disdain: people have compared our coverage and the health department’s decision to Nazi Germany, equating our reporting of public record with the Gestapo and genocide.
It’s not a fun place to be. But we have to remember there are no ‘bad guys’ here. The bad guy is the virus. It’s the disease that’s left 42 DeKalb County residents dead and many more hospitalized, out of work, without a family member.
That is what we are fighting here. Not each other. If you want to support a local business, order take out or curbside pickup or drop off a check or just straight up cash if you have to. Talk to your local chamber of commerce, municipal leaders, banks to see how you can apply for state COVID-19 relief grants to perhaps take the edge off the devastation your business is feeling. Get tested at the free COVID-19 testing sites in Sycamore and Genoa next week. Wear a mask when out and about. Don’t gather in large groups with people you don’t live with.
A lot of things are spiraling out of our control right now. But these are the things we can actively do in the coming days. We can do this.
Suburban Cook County and the Metro East region outside St. Louis will come under stricter rules meant to curb the spread of COVID-19 on Wednesday, including a shuttering of indoor dining and bar service. […]
The suburban Cook County region has had eight consecutive days of test positivity rate increases and seven days of increased hospital admissions. It is the first region to surpass the state-set thresholds in these two areas at the same time. The other regions that have triggered tougher rules have done so by reaching an 8% positivity rate threshold.
Gov. Pritzker is pushing another wave of business lockdowns despite the courts overturning his emergency orders.
Small businesses are hanging on by a thread and many won’t survive. What’s more, Pritzker is trying to push a progressive tax that would be a nail in the coffin of businesses that survive the pandemic.
Join us for an event featuring two of America’s top economic minds, Dr. Art Laffer and Stephen Moore.
They will discuss their recently published comprehensive study describing the devastating impact the proposed “fair tax” will have on the future of Illinois.
The U.S. set a daily record Friday for new confirmed coronavirus infections and nearly matched it Saturday with 83,178, data published by Johns Hopkins University shows. Close to 8.6 million Americans have contracted the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and about 225,000 have died; both totals are the world’s highest. About half the states have seen their highest daily infection numbers so far at some point in October.
A recent surge in positive COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in El Paso, Texas, has caused city officials to order a curfew for residents.
The curfew has been imposed for 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. to limit mobility in the community, El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego said at a press conference Sunday. For the next two weeks, citizens are required to stay home unless they are traveling to and from work or accessing essential services.
Only one person is permitted to access essential services at a time, and trick-or-treat activities on Halloween are not allowed, Samaniego said. Violators will be fined $250 for failing to wear a face mask and $500 for any other violations of the order. […]
Since Oct. 1, the county has seen a 160% increase in COVID-19 positivity rates and a 300% jump in hospitalizations.
Intensive care units at all area hospitals reached 100% capacity as of Saturday, Samaniego said. An overflow of ICU patients are being airlifted to other cities.
With new coronavirus cases shattering records on a daily basis, Utah’s hospitals are expected to begin rationing care in a week or two.
That’s the prediction of Greg Bell, president of the Utah Hospital Association, who said administrators of the state’s hospitals confronted Gov. Gary Herbert on Thursday with a grim list: Criteria they propose doctors should use if they are forced to decide which patients can stay in overcrowded intensive care units.
There are more than 41,000 Covid-19 patients hospitalized in the United States, a 40 percent rise in the past month. And unlike during the earlier months of the pandemic, more of those patients are being cared for not in metropolitan regions but in more sparsely populated parts of the country, where the medical infrastructure is less robust. […]
Skeptics need only look at places like Kansas City, Mo., where this month medical centers turned away ambulances because they had no room for more patients. And in Idaho, a hospital that was 99 percent full warned last week that it may have to transfer coronavirus patients to hospitals as far away as Seattle and Portland, Ore.
Hospitals in hard-hit parts of the country are resorting to a tactic commonly used during the pandemic as it eats away at medical resources: limiting their services.
In Tennessee on Saturday, the Maury Regional Medical Center in Columbia suspended all elective procedures requiring an overnight stay to make room for Covid-19 patients. Most of the facility’s 26 I.C.U. beds are already filled.
To better understand the experiences of teenagers during this unique time, my colleagues and I fielded a survey of 1,523 U.S. teens from May to July this year, asking about their mental health, family time, sleep, technology use, and views on the race-related protests and the police. We assessed mental well-being using four measures: life satisfaction, happiness, symptoms of depression, and loneliness. We then compared the 2020 teens’ responses with responses to identical questions from a similar survey in 2018.
Surprisingly, teens’ mental health did not collectively suffer during the pandemic when the two surveys are compared. The percentage of teens who were depressed or lonely was actually lower in 2020 than in 2018, and the percentage who were unhappy or dissatisfied with life was only slightly higher.
This relatively positive picture for mental health occurred despite many of the challenges faced by the teens in our survey. Nearly one out of three teens (29 percent) knew someone diagnosed with COVID-19. More than one out of four (27 percent) said a parent had lost a job, and exactly one out of four was worried about their families having enough food to eat. Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) were worried about catching the virus, and two-thirds worried about not being able to see their friends.
So why was teen mental health stable, or even better, during the pandemic?
“The indoor-dining issue is a joke,” said Jon Roderick, owner of Jerry’s Cafeteria in Granite City, on Friday. “Whenever they want to get really serious about this, they’ll close Walmart. … More people go through Walmart in an hour than go through my restaurant in a day. It’s a far more dangerous place.”
People don’t normally spend a couple of hours in Walmart without masks on their faces talking to others across from them and/or next to them at their tables.
DeVore also maintains that the Pritzker administration doesn’t have the authority to revoke liquor licenses over indoor dining and accused him of using intimidation tactics that “border on criminality.”
“The license holder has to be violating the (Illinois Liquor Control Act) or a local liquor ordinance or something,” DeVore said. “There is no authority to take someone’s liquor license because they’re not following his executive order. It’s impossible. The governor’s lying.”
For the umpteenth time, the governor’s EOs are authorized under the Illinois Emergency Management Act, a law that goes back decades. Among his many statutory emergency powers…
(1) To suspend the provisions of any regulatory statute prescribing procedures for conduct of State business, or the orders, rules and regulations of any State agency, if strict compliance with the provisions of any statute, order, rule, or regulation would in any way prevent, hinder or delay necessary action, including emergency purchases, by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, in coping with the disaster. […]
(9) To suspend or limit the sale, dispensing, or transportation of alcoholic beverages, firearms, explosives, and combustibles.
On Saturday, Ives posted a video in front of Ki’s, a restaurant in Glendale Heights defying Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s new indoor dining ban, imposed in the wake of rising infections in DuPage. Ives said businesses following health guidelines should not be subject to “arbitrary” rules. Most area deaths came from “long-term care facilities,” not restaurants, she said.
As we’ve discussed before, the virus just doesn’t pop up in congregate facilities. It has to come in from somewhere. And a big “somewhere” is restaurants and bars.
* Meanwhile, Sam Toia at the Illinois Restaurant Association was on WGN Radio the other day…
We do need a stimulus bill. We need the Restaurant Act passed. That was a part of the Heroes Act that was passed out of the United States House. Within it was $120 billion in grants to independent restaurants. In Chicago, we’re A very independent restaurants city, we’re not like Tampa or Houston, a chain restaurant town. So it’s very important that we pass a stimulus bill for the restaurant industry, like we’ve done in the past for the airlines, for the banking industry for the auto industry. You know, we are the largest private sector employer here in the state of Illinois. We began the year with over 594,000 people working in the restaurant, food service industry, with over 25,000 restaurants. The National Restaurant Association predicts that 20% of the restaurants could close. That’s 5,000 restaurants and over 120,000 jobs. That’s why we need the United States federal government to stop with the stimulus bill for the restaurants.
I think you’re more likely to get the Coronavirus in one of your friend’s basement than you are in a gathering and a personal gathering, than you are in one of our restaurants here throughout the state of Illinois. Now, we always say, I want to make sure I go on and say that we do not, the IRA the Illinois Restaurant Association, we do not advocate for operatives to disobey the governor’s executive order, even though we cannot support the mitigation measure, but we do not want them to, like I said, disobey the governor’s executive order. […]
We’re trying to talk to the governor and his team, saying ‘Can’t we go to 25 percent capacity? Do we have to go to zero percent capacity?’ And we agree that people should not be standing at the bar, we think that diners should be in their seats. And when they’re in their seats, they’re wearing their mask. When the waitperson comes, they’re wearing their mask. And then the food comes, you take your mask off. And then when a person comes back, you put your mask on, cover faces, keep open places, social distancing. We get that, we just need to work together. But we agree that people should not be standing around a restaurant bar. Diners should be in seats with their faces covered 100%, but not close down 100% you know, at least go to 25%.
If it was that easy, there would be no problems with a spiking virus right now. The fact is that way too many restaurant owners are ignoring public health requirements. And they’re only emphasizing this failure to do their part by thumbing their noses at the new mitigations while their local positivity rates skyrocket. From a suburban Republican buddy…
You drive around here and restaurants have signs up that they are staying open. It’s bizarre and unsettling from both a health and rule of law perspective. Hope it changes.
…Adding… From comments…
One thing I keep seeing on Facebook is people complaining that because most of the current transmission is in private residences, bars and restaurants shouldn’t be tamped down. Well, guess what…today’s heavy caseload from residential spread is tomorrow’s restaurant superspreading event.
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 4,729 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 17 additional deaths.
- Adams County: 1 female 80s
- Cook County: 1 male 30s, 1 male 50s, 1 female 60s, 1 male 60s, 1 female 70s, 1 male 70s, 2 female 80s, 2 male 80s, 1 female 90s, 1 male 90s
- Lake County: 1 female 90s
- Peoria County: 1 male 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 378,985 cases, including 9,522 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from October 19 – October 25 is 6.3%. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 57,264 specimens for a total 7,326,216. As of last night, 2,638 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 589 patients were in the ICU and 238 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
*All data are provisional and will change. In order to rapidly report COVID-19 information to the public, data are being reported in real-time. Information is constantly being entered into an electronic system and the number of cases and deaths can change as additional information is gathered. Information for deaths previously reported has changed, therefore, today’s numbers have been adjusted. For health questions about COVID-19, call the hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
* Sunday…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 4,062 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 24 additional deaths.
Cook County: 1 male 20s, 1 male 40s, 1 male 60s, 4 females 70s, 3 females 80s, 2 males 80s
Fayette County: 2 females 70s
Ford County: 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
Lake County: 1 female 90s
Macon County: 1 female 80s
Macoupin County: 1 male 40s
Monroe County: 1 female 80s
St. Clair County: 1 male 60s, 1 male 90s
Whiteside County: 1 male 50s, 1 male 80s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 374,256 cases, including 9,505 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from October 18 – October 24 is 6.1%. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 72,097 specimens for a total 7,268,952. As of last night, 2,605 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 565 patients were in the ICU and 214 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
* Saturday…
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today reported 6,161 new confirmed cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 63 additional deaths.
Adams County: 1 male 60s, 1 male 80s, 1 female 90s
Carroll County: 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
Clark County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s, 2 females 90s, 1 male 80s, 1 male 90s
Coles County: 1 female 90s
Cook County: 1 female 40s, 1 female 60s, 2 males 60s, 2 females 70s, 4 males 70s, 2 females 80s, 2 male 80s, 2 females 90s, 1 male 90s
DeWitt County: 1 male 80s
Douglas County: 1 male 90s
DuPage County: 2 males 60s
Edgar County: 2 males 80s
Ford County: 1 male 90s
Franklin County: 1 male 80s
Jefferson County: 2 males 90s
Kane County: 1 male 90s
Kankakee County: 1 male 40s
Kendall County: 1 female 80s
Lake County: 1 male 90s
Marion County: 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
McDonough County: 2 females 60s, 1 male 60s
Monroe County: 1 female 90s
Montgomery County: 1 female 90s
Peoria County: 1 male 80s, 1 female 90s
Pike County: 1 female 80s, 1 female 90s
St. Clair County: 1 male 90s
Stark County: 1 female 40s
Tazewell County: 1 female 80s, 2 females 90s
Washington County: 1 male 70s
Will County: 1 male 50s, 1 male 80s
Winnebago County: 1 female 80s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 370,194 cases, including 9,481 deaths, in 102 counties in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total test from October 17 – October 23 is 6.1%. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 83,517 specimens for a total of 7,196,855. As of last night, 2,616 people in Illinois were reported to be in the hospital with COVID-19. Of those, 560 patients were in the ICU and 222 patients with COVID-19 were on ventilators.
Like cities across the country, Chicago is facing a massive financial challenge as a result of the pandemic and the absence of assistance from the federal government. 65% of our budget deficit is directly attributable to the fiscal impacts of this pandemic. #Chi2021Budget
A reminder of the pandemic's impact on our economy: - 77.5% decline in the hotel tax - 49.5% decline in the amusement tax - Ground transportation tax down 47.8% - Parking taxes down 48% - Motor vehicle fuel tax down 48.5% - City share of the sales tax down 35%#Chi2021Budget
Today Citizens for Judicial Fairness is launching a new ad highlighting Justice Tom Kilbride’s broken promise not to accept “one penny” from Mike Madigan.
The ad uses Kilbride’s own words against him. Kilbride told WBEZ on October 2 that he issued a “mandate” to his campaign to reject money from Madigan or his entities. Despite that public declaration, Kilbride took more than half a million dollars from the Madigan controlled Democratic Party of Illinois on October 16th according to disclosure records filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections.
Chairman of Citizens for Judicial Fairness Jim Nowlan released the following statement:
Madigan’s favorite judge Tom Kilbride is in trouble, and Madigan is riding to the rescue. For weeks, Kilbride has been touting his independence, honesty, and integrity, but in a sad act of desperation, Kilbride accepted $550,000 from Madigan a mere two weeks after publicly vowing to reject any money from Madigan and his entities. Kilbride’s actions make it clear that he puts his allegiance to Madigan over his independence and even his own integrity.
- Jim Nowlan
Learn more about Justice Kilbride’s broken promise not to take any money from Madigan or his entities:
News-Gazette: Trashed by fellow Democrats, Madigan still flush with cash
Peoria Journal Star: Madigan-controlled funds used to boost Tom Kilbride in Supreme Court race
State Rep. Tim Butler isn’t sure how he contracted COVID-19, but he knows what to do now.
It entails remaining in quarantine for at least 10 days. Of course, that span matches almost perfectly the time until election day Nov. 3.
“It’s difficult as a politician, going into the last 10 days before the election, to say, ‘Hey, you’ve got to stay home,’” Butler said. “That kind of stinks.” […]
“It is what it is,” said Butler, who also said he spent the previous week in Springfield. “Obviously it’s a very contagious virus. I’ve taken it seriously from the beginning.
“I’ve tried to wear a mask and social distance when at all possible, but obviously all of us don’t take all the protections we do 24 hours a day, and we get a little lax. So who knows how I got it.”
Butler, who represents the northern part of Springfield up through Tazewell County, is the fifth state legislator who has publicly disclosed a COVID-19 diagnosis since the Spring. Others include Reps. Edward Gonzalez Jr. (D-Chicago), Sam Yingling (D-Grayslake), David Welter (R-Morris) and Dave Severin (R-Benton). Illinois Congressmen Rodney Davis (R-Taylorville) — who represents part of Springfield — and Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) also tested positive.
House Republican members Welter, Severin and Butler announced their diagnoses within a little more than a week of each other.
Local health officials said Sunday that the region that includes Sangamon County is “strikingly close” to additional mitigations for bars and restaurants as it combats another wave of COVID-19. […]
“I’ve practiced infectious diseases for 40 years,” added Dr. Donald Graham, a clinical professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Disease at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine. “I’ve seen a number of epidemics, both in Springfield, Sangamon County and the state of Illinois and throughout the country and I can tell you this is the worst I’ve ever seen.”
Miller warned that other regions of Illinois have had to recently implement additional mitigation measures, including a ban on indoor service at bars and restaurants.
The state’s top medical officer wept during a coronavirus briefing Friday as deaths and hospitalizations continue to climb throughout Illinois.
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, head of the Illinois Department of Public Health, has unwaveringly guided Illinois through the COVID-19 crisis for months. But the doctor broke down during an emotional briefing where she pleaded for Illinoisans to wear masks and social distance so they can save lives — and stop health care workers from being overwhelmed by seeing more patients die.
Ezike noted at the start of the briefing she is not immune to “COVID fatigue” and has felt and lived the pain and tragedy of life during the pandemic. But cases, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 are all rising, she said, before noting the most recent statistics.
“Since yesterday, we lost an additional 31 lives for a total of 9,418 deaths. These are people who started with us in 2020 and won’t be with us at the Thanksgiving table.” She paused for a moment and continued, “Today, we are reporting 3,874 new cases, for a total of 364,033 confirmed cases since the start of this pandemic.”
“I’ve never run a marathon, but I have the utmost regard for those who’ve been able to train and plan and finish a marathon. But this is a difficult race when you can’t actually see the endpoint, and I’m sorry that that’s the message I have for you,” Ezike said.
“Nevertheless, I’m asking you to fight the fatigue,” she added. “Fight the urge to give up on social distancing. Fight for your kids to have safe, healthy opportunity to have in-person learning in school with teachers who were trained to teach them in the classroom. Fight to have safe, healthy environments in which we can work so that businesses can remain open so that our economies can start to thrive again. This does mean wearing your mask.” […]
She said the decisions of those who attend unmasked gatherings promote the spread of the virus which can then find its way to more vulnerable populations. She urged those attending unmasked gatherings to “think beyond themselves” and consider who they may unknowingly infect, especially if they have the virus but are not showing symptoms.
“All these people who work with the public on a regular basis – you cannot work from home as a bus driver,” Ezike said. “And so these people have to go to work every day as the disease is increasing throughout the state. And they’re the ones that will be dying.”
Her high position does not keep her in “some Covid free bubble exempt from all the pain and the tragedy of this pandemic,” Ezike said.
“So I understand how pandemic fatigue is striking everyone,” she added. “It’s real. People are tired of not seeing their families. They’re tired of postponing the weddings and the other life celebrations. Trying to work from home while also trying to manage kids learning … remotely is a challenge.
“Not being able to visit your loved ones in long-term care and nursing homes, not being able to gather with groups of friends for a night out in your favorite restaurant is getting to be a lot to bear. The way we work, the way we live, the way we play has all changed and the harsh reality is that the sacrifices we’ve made — and that we continue to make — do not have a future expiration date.”
Some people will refute the statistics, Ezike said. But the reality is that coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths are surging again.
“The way we work, the way we live, the way we play have all changed,” IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said, “and the harsh reality is that the sacrifices we’ve made and that we continue to make do not have a future expiration date.” […]
Since the pandemic began, Illinois has recorded 364,033 confirmed cases and 9,418 deaths.
“These are people who started with us in 2020 and won’t be with us at the Thanksgiving table,” Ezike said.
* Video…
In an emotional briefing, Illinois' top health official teared up while she delivered the latest COVID-19 numbers for the state and urged residents not to get complacent in fighting the virus. https://t.co/U7tCzwcCKtpic.twitter.com/fjtSPPFyxy
In an interview with NBC Nightly News over the weekend, Ezike said she’s received hundreds of email since the news conference, and that “it sounds like everyone needed to have that release together.” […]
“It’s incited some feelings, some PTSD-type feeling as we think about starting round two, just remembering how difficult round one [was],” she said.
Ezike is not exempt from COVID-19 as she has lost relatives from the virus and takes it personally when she hears of business owners blatantly defying the state’s rules and residents refusing to wear masks.
“There are no good decisions, but who wants to be in a situation like that,” she said. […]
“We need to take those tears and turn it into action,” she said. “We need to wear our masks, maintain our distance, get our flu shots. We can be sad, but we can still fight.”
*** UPDATE *** From today…
Ezike on her tears Friday: "I just got overwhelmed. A combination of a lot of months of frustration and maybe some fear and some discouragement at the route and the road that we've taken, despite some opportunities and chances to do better. … https://t.co/cst7MpKXo8
State COVID-19 restrictions, including the closure of indoor service at bars and restaurants, are likely to return to the Metro East this week, leaving restaurant owners scrambling to find a way to stay open as the weather cools.
The region on Sunday hit three consecutive days with a COVID-19 test positivity rate above 8%, which automatically prompts additional restrictions from the Illinois Department of Public Health, according to the state pandemic plan.
The state had not made an official announcement Sunday, but county officials expect restrictions to begin Wednesday, Bryan Whitaker, assistant director of St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, said in a briefing Sunday.
The new measures will include closure of all indoor dining and an 11 p.m. curfew for bars and restaurants. Outdoor diners will be required to make a reservation and social gatherings will be capped at 25 people or 25% of a room’s capacity, whichever is less, according to the state plan.
The Metro East region, which includes St. Clair, Madison, Monroe, Clinton, Bond, Washington and Randolph counties, has faced targeted restrictions twice before. The area was the first of the state’s 11 regions to have state restrictions added, on Aug. 18, prompted by its positivity rate, and then again on Sept. 2.
…Adding… Press release…
Governor Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) are announcing COVID-19 resurgence mitigations will be implemented in Regions 4 and 10, which encompass Metro East and Suburban Cook County respectively, beginning at 12:01 am on Wednesday, October 28, 2020. Region 4 has had a 7-day rolling average test positivity rate of 8 percent or above for three consecutive days. Region 10 has had eight consecutive days of increases in test positivity and seven days of increased hospital admissions making it the first region in the state to meet the metrics for additional mitigations in this way and surpass warning levels in two categories simultaneously. The sustained increases seen in the regions exceed the thresholds set for establishing mitigation measures under the state’s Restore Illinois Resurgence Plan.
The administration continues to work aggressively to support small businesses impacted by the ongoing pandemic, distributing $7.5 million and $14.8 million respectively in emergency grants and assistance to businesses and communities in Regions 4 and 10 alone. Businesses in the regions will also receive priority consideration for the current round of Business Interruption Grants as a result of the additional mitigations.
“Over the weekend, two more regions – Region 4, Metro East, as well as Region 10, Suburban Cook County – triggered our metrics for additional mitigations, meaning that, starting Wednesday, 6 of our 11 regions will be operating under our resurgence framework,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Much like the four areas already operating under Tier One or Tier Two of the plan – Northwestern Illinois, Southern Illinois, and Will, Kankakee, DuPage and Kane Counties – Region 4 triggered our 8 percent positivity average threshold, the second time it has done so since mid-summer. Region 10, on the other hand, is the first region in Illinois to earn additional mitigations not because of its positivity rate alone, but because its positivity rate and its COVID-related hospitalizations have both seen a sustained increase over the last 10 days.”
“We are seeing test positivity across the state increase, but for Region 10, Suburban Cook County, we are also seeing a steady increase in hospitalizations for COVID-like illness,” said IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “At the beginning of the pandemic, we were concerned about overwhelming our hospitals and we must take action now to prevent that possibility. We are entering flu season and our hospitals are facing both COVID-19 and flu admissions. The same things that can help prevent the spread of COVID-19 will help prevent the spread of flu. Please, wash your hands, watch your distance, and wear your mask. And make sure to get your flu shot.”
Mitigation measures taking effect October 28 in Regions 4 and 10 include:
Bars
No indoor service
All outside bar service closes at 11:00 p.m.
All bar patrons should be seated at tables outside
No ordering, seating, or congregating at bar (bar stools should be removed)
Tables should be 6 feet apart
No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
No dancing or standing indoors
Reservations required for each party
No seating of multiple parties at one table
Restaurants
No indoor dining or bar service
All outdoor dining closes at 11:00 p.m.
Outside dining tables should be 6 feet apart
No standing or congregating indoors or outdoors while waiting for a table or exiting
Reservations required for each party
No seating of multiple parties at one table
Meetings, Social Events, Gatherings
Limit to lesser of 25 guests or 25 percent of overall room capacity
No party buses
Gaming and Casinos close at 11:00 p.m., are limited to 25 percent capacity, and follow mitigations for bars and restaurants, if applicable
These mitigations do not currently apply to schools.
Support for small businesses has been one of the central features of the Pritzker administration’s COVID-19 response. Since March, the administration has launched a menu of small business and community relief programs – with over $500 million in grants and programs launched by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), including emergency hospitality grants, a downstate small business stabilization program, Fast Track Capital, and more.
DCEO is also actively processing reimbursements for local governments impacted by COVID-19 via the state’s local CURES program. All eligible governments in Regions 4 and 10 can submit their certification to the department and begin submitting reimbursement requests. For more information on programs available for businesses and communities, please visit DCEO’s website.
In the coming days, IDPH will continue to track the positivity rate in both regions to determine if mitigations can be relaxed, if additional mitigations are required, or if current mitigations should remain in place. If the positivity rate in Region 4 averages less than or equal to 6.5% for three consecutive days, then the region will return to Phase 4 mitigations under the Restore Illinois Plan. If the positivity rate averages between 6.5% and 8%, the new mitigations will remain in place and unchanged. If the positivity rate averages greater than or equal to 8% after 14 days, more stringent mitigations can be applied to further reduce spread of the virus.
If the positivity rate in Region 10 averages less than or equal to 6.5% over a three-day period, there is a decrease in hospital admissions for COVID-19 like illness over a three-day period, and the three-day rolling averages of ICU bed availability and medical/surgical bed availability is greater than or equal to 20% over a seven-day period, the region will return to Phase 4 mitigations under the Restore Illinois Plan. Conversely, if the average positivity rate continues to increase over seven out of 10 days and the hospital admissions for COVID-19 like illness continues to increase over seven out of 10 days, more stringent mitigations can be applied. If the metrics remain stable, the region will continue to be monitored.
Currently four of the state’s 11 regions have positivity rates above the public health department’s 8% threshold for resurgence mitigations. Regions 5, 7, and 8 are currently operating under additional mitigations as the regions continue to report a 7-day rolling positivity rate above 8%. Region 1 is currently operating under Tier 2 mitigation measures after experiencing reporting a positivity rate greater than 8% for 14 days despite Tier 1 mitigation measures being in place.
As part of the administration’s robust response to the pandemic, the state continues to strengthen its nation-leading testing operation. Illinois is averaging more than three times the testing than the average state. Testing is readily available throughout the state, and the vast majority of test results are returned within an actionable period. Moving forward, testing remains a critical step to reduce the spread of the virus, given that a positive test result begins the contact tracing process and can prevent further spread in communities.
In addition to testing, IDPH continues to monitor each region in the state for several key indicators to identify early, but significant increases of COVID-19 transmission in Illinois, potentially signifying resurgence. Indictors include an increase in the region’s positivity rate with a simultaneous increase in either hospital admissions for COVID-like-illness or a decrease in hospital capacity, or three consecutive days of greater than or equal to 8% test positivity rate (7-day rolling average). These indicators can be used to determine whether additional community mitigation interventions are needed for a region to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.
A full list of mitigation measures pertaining to some businesses and industries may be found on the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) website at www.dceocovid19resources.com/restore-illinois.
Ken Griffin, in a billionaire battle with Gov. J.B. Pritzker over the governor’s effort to switch Illinois to a graduated-rate income tax system, pumped another $7 million of his wealth to oppose it, state campaign finance reports showed Friday.
Griffin, the founder and CEO of Citadel, a Chicago-based hedge fund and investment firm, has now given $53.75 million to the Coalition to Stop the Proposed Tax Hike group, which is opposed to Pritzker’s signature agenda item — a proposed state constitutional amendment on the Nov. 3 ballot to move Illinois from a flat-rate income tax to a graduated-rate income tax that increases the levy along with income. […]
Griffin, regarded as Illinois’ wealthiest person, is worth $15 billion, according to Forbes. Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune, is worth $3.4 billion, according to Forbes. Pritzker has put $56.5 million into the Vote Yes for Fairness group backing the proposed amendment.
Griffin’s donation, which the group received Wednesday but wasn’t reported until Friday, came as he launched a personal attack on Pritzker and Democrats. He called Pritzker “a shameless master of personal tax avoidance” in an email to his Chicago employees on Thursday.
[Chris Mooney of the Institute of Government and Public Affairs] suggested that Griffin could potentially be using his huge contributions on these hot-button issues to raise his political profile for a run against Gov. Pritzker in a battle of billionaires. “It seems very unlikely, especially after the experience of the Rauner administration,” he said, adding that Griffin would likely be labeled “Rauner II.”
“On the other hand,” Mooney said, “hubris is a very powerful force for the superrich, as it is for a lot of people. So who knows. Maybe he’s going to do it anyway and see what happens.”
* The Question: In your opinion, will he run? Take the poll and then explain your answer in comments, please…
The owners of FoxFire restaurant in Geneva are suing Gov. JB Pritzker over his ban on indoor service at restaurants and bars because of a rising number of COVID-19 infections.
The ban took effect Friday in Kane and DuPage counties as well as in Will and Kankakee counties. An emergency petition, filed in Kane County on Friday, asks a judge to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Kane County Health Department from enforcing the ban without a court hearing. […]
In addition to filing the emergency petition, FoxFire on Friday also filed a suit against Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Kane County Health Department. The suit states that Pritzker has exceeded the emergency powers that were given to him.
Kane County’s seven-day rolling average positivity rate on Sunday was 11.5 percent. Region 8’s hospital bed capacity is down to 25 percent after 8 straight days of admission increases.
*** UPDATE *** The complaint is here. They’re using the ol’ “He only gets one 30-day emergency declaration” gambit that has failed in every county but one. The emergency TRO petition is here.
As of Oct. 21, hospital admissions for patients with COVID-like illnesses had increased 75% in two weeks within the Illinois Department of Public Health’s Region 8, which includes DuPage and Kane counties.
As of Oct. 23, only 25% of hospital beds in Region 8 were open, down from a third earlier that week. The state’s hospitalization “red zone” is 20% availability. At that point, regions are automatically put into state mitigation.
Remember “flatten the curve”? Well, the state’s 7-day average case positivity rate rose 54% in the 2-week period ending Oct. 22. And Region 8’s 7-day average test positivity rate increased 64% during the 10 days prior to that date.
The trend certainly does not appear to be our friend. And who knows what the situation is by the time you read this?
Even so, Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) complained during a House Republican campaign press conference last week about the state mitigation measures which will soon be imposed on her home county of DuPage, claiming that “we do not have the same type of crisis scenario that we did back in March.”
Scientists knew very little about the virus in March, so people didn’t know quite what to do. Also, Gov. J.B. Pritzker has said over and over that he has zero plans to impose another sweeping stay-at-home order, which shut down a gigantic swath of an already mostly self-shuttered economy beginning in March.
The new mitigations apply mainly to bars and restaurants, closing indoor service and limiting hours. There is really no comparison between these mitigations and what was imposed in March. Remember when you couldn’t get a haircut, or visit the doctor for a routine checkup, have a cavity filled or hang out with a friend? This is most definitely not that.
Mazzochi went on to declare that the governor is “perfectly happy to wreck what’s going on in DuPage.”
Um, even if his secret identity really is a cartoon super-villain, Pritzker carried DuPage County in 2018. Presumably, he’d like to win it again. Joyfully wrecking DuPage would serve what purpose? Mazzochi may be spending too much time on social media.
But her reaction is an indication of the influential forces that are being targeted here. Influential restaurant and bar owners don’t appear to be willing to take this lying down. Several have made a big public show of remaining open to indoor service in defiance of the new prohibitions.
Opponents of the new mitigations say that bars and restaurants and other venues shouldn’t be singled out when the “real” problem is in nursing homes. But these venues are more interconnected than you might think.
“Recent data released by Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services shows that weekly cases in nursing homes rose nationwide in late September as the disease became more widespread in 38 states and the country entered its third coronavirus spike,” the Washington Post has reported.
In other words, if you want to protect Grandma (and a whole lot of other folks), you gotta control community spread. Nursing homes aren’t isolated bubbles. Workers, contractors, vendors, visitors, etc. come and go all the time. Whatever is in the community has a good chance of getting into those facilities and then can spread like wildfire.
DuPage County’s own contact tracing shows the second most outbreaks between Sept. 29 and Oct. 13 were connected to restaurants. The most? Long-term care and assisted living centers. That’s just one of several reasons why the state is focusing on restaurants.
Some folks, including the Illinois Restaurant Association, are referencing some DuPage stats that go back to March to claim that restaurants aren’t a real problem. Except, restaurants and taverns were closed for months last spring. Of course they weren’t a source.
Countless restaurants and bars are centers of their communities and many of their proprietors are widely respected. Not to mention that the hospitality industry is an incredibly large and important segment of the state’s economy.
There is no doubt that some very good, hardworking people are about to face financial ruin, owners and employees alike. And a lot of those owners have relationships with their legislators, mayors and other powerful types.
Point being, the governor is facing a different sort of challenge than last spring. We were mostly in it together back then. But now the virus is forcing the state to single out an organized, motivated and influential constituency and those folks are bound to gain significant traction, especially if heavily populated suburban Cook and Chicago are put into mitigation.
