Suddenly I turned around and she was standin’ there
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns
Come in, she said
I’ll give ya shelter from the storm
Friday, May 15, 2020 - Posted by Advertising Department
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* Gov. Pritzker began his briefing today by talking about testing. From a press release…
Expanding COVID-19 testing capabilities in the State of Illinois is a crucial part of the state’s plan to Restore Illinois. With increased testing we can make educated decisions that protect our state, our communities and our families. Today, the State is announcing new drive-thru COVID-19 testing facilities will be available in the coming days on Chicago’s southside (May 16), Champaign (May 19), Rolling Meadows (May 20), while drive-thru and walk-up services will be offered in Peoria (May 23). These free community services will be open seven days a week to test individuals with COVID-19 symptoms and those employees who support critical services.
“Not everyone with COVID-19 has symptoms. Without greater testing, it is difficult to know who is infected with this virus. This could mean a person who thinks they are healthy may unknowingly pass the virus to someone else, potentially with deadly consequences. I encourage residents in these areas to take advantage of this opportunity to get tested for free and to take action to help prevent further spread of the virus,” said Dr. Ngozi Ezike, Director of Illinois Department of Public Health.
All individuals with symptoms are encouraged to seek testing at these Community Based Testing Sites. Additional accommodations have been made for the following individuals with or without COVID-like symptoms.
• Healthcare workers
• First Responders
• Employees of Correctional Facilities
• Individuals exposed to confirmed COVID-19 patients
• Employees that support Critical Infrastructure (grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants, gas stations, public utilities, factories, childcare and sanitation)
• All local and state government employees
• Individuals with compromised immune systems, chronic medical conditions
Our current seven day average is 12%. The cumulative statewide positivity rate since way back in February is 16.8%.
Looking back, remember that our peak positivity rate was on April 4, when 23.6% of tests back positive on a rolling average. I would urge caution and reading too far into this decline as there is a strong inverse correlation between the number of tests taken per day, and the associated positive rate, meaning that part of the reason for the lower positivity rate can be attributed to our increased testing.
Remember, we surpassed 10,000 tests per day for the first time on April,24, and we’ve stayed above 11,000 every day since then. Over the last seven days we’ve nearly doubled that, with an average of 20,000 tests per day. The good news is that our current statewide positivity rate, under 14% on average for the last 14 days, that’s likely becoming a better indicator of the true infection rate from the general public than it was when testing was probably limited expanding testing.
Please remember to pardon all transcription errors.
* On to questions. The question was about Iowa and his concerns…
We’re not collecting the data about people who are crossing over from Iowa. But there is a lot of data about people who are gathering together in large groups. We know that there is a widespread positivity rate everywhere in the nation. There are COVID positive people that are walking around, and maybe not taking the proper social distancing or precautions. But either way, I am concerned, I am genuinely concerned that with no stay at home order in place in Iowa people who are traveling across the border and in gathering in large groups or going into restaurants or bars or getting in close contact with others will come back to Illinois and spread it. And there is lots of evidence of that sort of spread taking place not necessarily across that border because there isn’t data about that border in particular, but there’s lots of evidence of asymptomatic spread. And that’s the reason remember originally for a stay at home order. We still have a lot of people are walking around untested, who have COVID-19.
That’s why I’ve told you more testing leads to more positive results. Because we know people are out there but haven’t been tested. They are in fact symptomatic carriers. That’s my concern and I would just warn the people of the Quad Cities region, be extraordinarily careful I would suggest that if you’re looking for the opportunity to get together to do the things that you’ve been doing in the past to go into a retail store or something like that. We’re 14 days away according to the data from you being able to do that and we’ve done so well up to now I hope you’ll continue on the same course.
* In light of you saying you’re worried about neighboring states opening too early and people crossing the border into Indiana and Wisconsin and bringing the virus back to Illinois, have you joined your family at your Wisconsin home and if not, how are they ensuring they don’t bring the virus back to you?…
Well, I am as you know isolated at home. So, I have not joined anybody in another state.
I’m safe at home and I’m not a carrier in any way if that’s your question.
I think that’s part of the question but also if they are out of state how will you then ensure they don’t bring the virus back to you?…
So, let me begin by saying that my wife and my daughter were in Florida before the stay at home, shelter in place orders were put in place. And they stayed there when the orders were put in place, they sheltered in place, as was the order and the suggestion.
And they have since returned home and isolated for a period of time. But they’re home now and they’re safe and no one is a carrier.
I shouldn’t say that definitively because the reality is that anytime you walk out the door, even if you’re wearing a mask I mean there is some possibility that people could become infected. So please don’t assume that someone can’t be a carrier that they think is possible, but we’re taking every precaution.
* Georgia which has a population similar to Illinois and a similar COVID-19 spread pattern is reopened basically and not demonstrating the potential transmission you’ve referenced possible in the past here. Can you say you’re reopening policy is working when it appears other states are outperforming Illinois, in terms of a restart and go back and redo anything to, what would it be?…
Well, I think that ignores a whole lot of different facts about Illinois than about Georgia, or another state. First of all, we have a major global city in Chicago, that has international passengers that were passing through coming to and staying in Chicago and even traveling throughout the state of Illinois, that’s you know that’s a, that’s one fact, to take note of. Another is that whatever the circumstances were or are in Georgia, we know what the pattern of the spread has been in Illinois. We know that the R Naughtthe essentially the rate at which it spreads come way down as a result of the stay at home rules that we put in place the order has really brought that R Naught down from 3.6 around 3.6 all the way down to near one. And that’s tremendous I mean that’s, I can’t speak to what other states R Naught sort of go into because I haven’t watched every state or the particular one you mentioned.
And lastly, I would say that when things open up here’s why it’s important that you have a period of time that you are gradually opening, because you are going to get a higher infection rate that’s just sort of a fact of life in a pandemic with no treatment with no nothing to stop the virus are going to get spread. We are testing, as much as anybody could at this point. Like I said, we’re among the top states for testing. So, we’re finding more people are positive here. But that doesn’t mean there are a lot of people that are positive and other state that aren’t being tested.
Lastly, I would just say that it takes weeks between the time that you open things up. That’s why you want this period of time, and a gradual opening it takes weeks and weeks, between the time that you open things up when people start interacting with one another and maybe you see in the cell phone data of people’s interactions and the time that they end up going to the hospital. The time that they end up on a ventilator and the time that unfortunately they may pass. So, these are all things that are perhaps unique from one place to another, other than the fact that the virus knows no boundaries and the virus only knows that it is sort of searching for the next person to infect.
* What do you say to small charter operators that are asking how a couple can fly to Chicago, take a train downtown, hop a bus to a harbor, and then be refused to board a small boat or a private sightseeing tour of Chicago’s lakefront miles offshore? Is this an entirely arbitrary policy and are you considering loosening those rules?…
The policies around air travel are not set by the state of Illinois. They are set by the federal government. So that’s the first thing when you say people are flying. That’s not under our control that is a decision by the federal government.
Secondly, we obviously a lot of work has been done to try to make sure that the trains, whether they’re, we’re talking CTA RTA or others are cleaned, you know are kept in condition, so that there’s a minimizing of any potential spread, not suggesting that one couldn’t contract it possible it’s possible really anywhere. But if people are taking the proper precautions, then it’s okay.
Now you’re saying, why wouldn’t we allow lots of people on a boat or why wouldn’t we open up Navy Pier, or something like that? The reality is that again when we see lots of people getting together in a single place, and one could easily bring a COVID-19 into that environment and spread it, we’ve seen the circumstances you read stories no doubt about someone who was infected infecting 100 other people in a location with a lot of people in a room in a boat and something else. So all I can say is that we’re doing the best that we can with the rules that we have in place. The orders, really are following the science, and I think we’ve done a pretty good job in Illinois, we have a ways to go, and certainly along the way to completely defeating the virus which isn’t under our control entirely, something that I think medical science and the researchers are going to have to ultimately come up with a vaccine for.
* It sounds to me like what you’re saying regarding like a boat or charter operators, and even if they were able to present a plan that they could do reservation only thoroughly clean boats in between tours allow let’s say only two or four people. It doesn’t sound like you’re at a point where you’re saying you’re willing or able to loosen those rules…
Well, again, we have rules in place now around two people in a boat as a limitation. It’s really for the purposes of advancing, people just as a leisure time want to go fishing and want to have somebody with them and you know the theory is that a typical boat might allow distance between two people in a boat that was at least a recommendation that we received around boating. When you talk about reopening a business, again, I want to reopen everything as fast as everybody else does. But I just want to be clear that when you get a group of people, jammed together in a space. There is potential for spread and we’re trying to avoid that. But in phase three and phase four you can read it yourself, there are opportunities for people to get together in an increasing amount.
* Response to the five Republican congressman who have sent you a letter raising concerns that you threatened to withhold federal funding in the state?…
My response is that they understand, I’m sure that the laws of the state need to be followed, that the executive orders of the state need to be followed and we will pursue enforcement actions wherever necessary, where people are flaunting the health and safety, they’re ignoring the rules that would keep people safe in their communities. So I know those five congressmen and I have spoken with them over the course of my term in office. I know they have the best interests of their constituents at heart but in this case I think they’re missing the point.
* Governor in late April you said the state was monitoring study about antibody tests but you were hesitant to recommend any because of the inconsistency in results. Has anything changed since then?…
There is a lot of work that’s been done, I’d like to turn it over to Dr Ezike because she understands these antibody tests better than I do, but I’ll just say that there is a lot of work that’s been done around these antibody tests and to my knowledge anyway there are quite a number of them that are ineffectual or not really the kinds of tests that will be useful for us. We want to be able to parse between those kinds of tests, which ones are effective which ones not but I’ll turn it over to Dr Ezike for a more informed view.
Dr. Ezike: So we are trying to learn as much as we can, along with the rest of the country and the rest of the world to see how these antibody tests can be a part of our reopening of the state. And so we do, we have just convened a group of experts of hospital epidemiologist, immunologist, biologists, academicians from across the state who will be convening to try to gather some of the information that’s around there and give you official guidance. You’ve probably heard reports from the feds that even if, and I think the WHO has said this publicly as well. But even if we do know that people develop antibodies, it’s not clear how long that protection would last, it’s not clear the level of antibodies that would be protective. So there’s a, I think there’s more questions than answers at this point. But we have some people in the state that have been doing a lot of antibody testing and so I’d like to see what we can garner maybe if there is some useful information, maybe it’s not specific as to okay you’re good to go and you’ll be immune for the next 10 years but maybe there’s some helpful information that can be garnered so we have a very esteemed group that’s convening to gather some information and see what our official guidance will be.
* Under your reopening plan to get to phase four testing must be widely available in each region regardless of symptoms or underlying risk factors. How close is the state to getting to reaching that sort of testing capacity that would allow for that?…
More testing is better and so, what’s the definition of adequate testing. The answer is that we want it widely available and so we, in my view, as we open up more testing sites and as we make available more materials for testing, I think we’re in a much better place. So we’re making a lot of progress I feel like we’re on a path to being in that spot as needed for every region of the state.
* What are your thoughts about the Naperville park district’s plans to pursue legal action seeking authority to reopen summer programming and facilities, independent of the timeline and Restore Illinois?…
Again, all I can say is that they should be following the data and the science here and not their guts. I too would like to allow all children my own included to participate in summer sports and group [garbled]. I hope we’ll be able to do that soon enough as we move through the phases of the plan and the Restore Illinois plan but I recommend against it. And of course you know people have every right to go to the courts. Too many people choose that. I think, in this circumstance and and so you know I realized that the the local officials there are going to do whatever it is that they want to do but I wish they would show some leadership.
* New questions about the whereabouts of your family, do you want to address that?…
Let me first say that I’ve been private and reserved when it comes to my children. And it’s because there are threats to my safety and to their safety. And so you’ve seen that there are people that stand outside the Thompson Center and stand outside the Capitol in Springfield, the whole thing I mean hateful signs that reference me personally, and that suggests, if not say, but suggests potential for violence.
And so, I told you earlier that my wife and daughter were down in Florida in early March, and in fact even a little before that, and you know they sheltered in place when the stay at home order came up and they stayed there until very recently.
So, we have a working farm there [Wisconsin]. There are animals on that farm, that is the central function to take care of animals at a farm and so you know that’s what they’re doing and I would hope that the GOP the Republican super PAC that’s pushing stories like this about my family would stop doing it because they are putting my children and my family in danger.
…Adding… The governor’s office clarified that his family is in Chicago, but they have visited the farm in Wisconsin.
* Has Illinois seen any confirmed cases of reinfection among people who have recovered? Are you following reports of reinfection and do you have any concerns about that?…
Dr. Ezike: Yes, I mean I get as much as I’m able to watch the news, I follow what everyone else has seen and I remember there was initially some cases, I believe it was out of Korea where they cited dozens if not hundreds of individuals who supposedly had been reinfected after an earlier infection. And I think I saw a follow up story regarding that saying that in fact, the test had been positive but it wasn’t active infection so it wasn’t a clear case of reinfection So, again, I don’t have the answers in terms of how long immunity lasts and if people can get reinfected. We know that there are diseases for which people do have lifelong immunity. We know that there are diseases that people receive a vaccine and then that immunity wanes. So again, this is a new virus, I think time is going to have to tell us that as we look around the world and see cases and cases of infection that have happened earlier, we’ll follow those down the road to see if in fact people do have real infection later on down the road. I don’t have the answer but we will continue to follow the science which will give us the answer.
* How many Illinois testing sites are relying on ABS rapid tests? And do we have plans to make changes?…
I want to be clear that the state doesn’t own a whole bunch of Abbott machines. The federal government did send us 15 machines, but they didn’t send us any many cartridges to go with itt o use the machines but they sent the machines. And so we have used some of those cartridges that we received. There are places that are using their own cartridges and as I say, we can’t control what they do. What we can do is look at the data as it comes to us as it gets reported to us, and just make sure we’re aware where that data came from. But, of course, I want to repeat that I want to discourage those folks from using it until they know what the FDA guidance will be to make sure that the sensitivity is proper to get the results that I think we all hope and expect to get from the COVID-19 test.
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced 2,432 new cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois, including 130 additional deaths.
Boone County: 1 male 70s
Champaign County: 1 female 40s
Cook County: 1 male youth, 2 males 30s, 2 females 40s, 4 males 40s, 5 males 50s, 4 females 60s, 8 males 60s, 10 females 70s, 8 males 70s, 18 females 80s, 9 males 80s, 3 unknown 80s, 6 females 90s, 5 males 90s, 1 male 100+
DuPage County: 1 male 60s, 1 female 70s, 2 males 70s, 3 females 80s, 1 male 90s
Kane County: 2 females 60s, 1 male 80s
Lake County: 1 male 40s, 2 males 50s, 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
LaSalle County: 1 female 60s, 1 female 80s
Macon County: 1 male 80s
Madison County: 1 female 80s, 2 females 90s
McHenry County: 1 female 50s, 1 male 50s, 1 male 70s, 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s
McLean County: 1 female 70s
Rock Island: 1 female 90s
Sangamon County: 1 female 60s
St. Clair County: 1 male 60s, 1 female 80s
Union County: 1 female 80s, 1 male 80s, 1 female 90s
Will County: 1 female 70s, 4 females 80s, 1 female 90s
Winnebago County: 1 female 90s
Currently, IDPH is reporting a total of 90,369 cases, including 4,058 deaths, in Illinois. The age of cases ranges from younger than one to older than 100 years. Within the past 24 hours, laboratories have reported 26,565 specimens for a total of 538,602. The statewide 7-day rolling positivity rate (positive tests) is 16%.
The Illinois Manteno Veterans’ Home (IVHM) is reporting the passing of a second resident with COVID-19. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 53 individuals at IVHM have contracted COVID-19, including two cases who have passed away.
With routines disrupted, unemployment skyrocketing and families forced into close quarters for extended periods, domestic violence is tragically on the rise in Williamson County, State’s Attorney Brandon Zanotti said Thursday while announcing a new capital campaign to support victims.
Zanotti said his office compared charges for domestic violence, aggravated domestic violence and order of protection petitions between March 16 and May 13 of this year compared to the same time last year. Zanotti said these filings have “more than doubled” under the stay-at-home order intended to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Is Mayor Lori Lightfoot planning to close streets and sidewalks so restaurants can safely reopen and give residents a place to run, walk and play? Sure sounds like it.
“People are itching to get outside. Businesses are looking at creative ways to serve customers. The key is how we do it,” the mayor tweeted Friday.
“Stay tuned for some changes to our streets and sidewalks. Transportation is more than just cars. We’ll show how Chicago can be safer and easier to get around.” […]
“The mayor is trying to be very progressive with us. There’s communication going on about maybe closing some streets for outside dining with the tables on the street. That way, we could have social distancing,” [Illinois Restaurant Association President Sam Toia] said.
Since toilet rooms have a lot of high-touch surfaces, door handles, faucets and stall doors, transfer risk in this environment can be high. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the virus that causes COVID-19 has been found in the feces of some patients diagnosed with COVID-19. However, it is unclear whether the virus found in feces may be capable of causing COVID-19.
There has not been any confirmed report of the virus spreading from feces to a person. Scientists also do not know how much risk there is that the virus could be spread from the feces of an infected person to another person.
However, they think this risk is low based on data from previous outbreaks of diseases caused by related coronaviruses, such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos funnels millions in coronavirus relief funds intended primarily for public schools to private, religious schools
DePaul says it will offer in-person classes in the fall as new committee takes up question for other Illinois universities
Lightfoot urges Chicago faith leaders to observe stay-at-home order
Naperville Park Board votes to take legal action to make its own decisions on reopening
‘It’s like a hurricane came and leveled the entire economy’: Retail sales fall 16.4%, a record
‘Everything we did was to predict the next outbreak.’ Yet scientists at Northwestern and elsewhere weren’t prepared for COVID-19. Why?
COVID-19 hitting hardest in Chicago ZIP codes already struggling with deadly threat of gun violence
StreetWise vendors face empty streets and empty pockets amid COVID-19: ‘Things are hard for everybody. Think how hard it is for those in the streets to survive.’
Woman and her 89-year-old mother both survive COVID-19: ‘I didn’t know if she was gonna live or die’
The Food and Drug Administration is cautioning the public about the reliability of a widely used rapid test for the coronavirus. The test, made by Abbott Laboratories, has been linked with inaccurate results that could falsely reassure patients that they are not infected with the virus.
The Trump administration has promoted the test as a key factor in controlling the epidemic in the U.S., and it’s used for daily testing at the White House.
As first reported on NPR, as many as 15 to 20 out of every 100 tests may produce falsely negative results. A study released this week indicated that the test could be missing as many as 48% of infections.
A rapid coronavirus test made by Abbott Laboratories could be missing infections because of “user error,” Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Friday. […]
A recent study from New York University, which has not been peer-reviewed, found the test missed a third of samples collected with nasopharyngeal swabs that tested positive with a test from rival Cepheid.
When using samples collected with “dry nasal swabs,” the Abbott test missed more than 48% of positive cases, the study said. Both nasopharyngeal swabs and dry nasal swabs are collected from the nostril, but the former is inserted much deeper into the nose.
Azar said Friday that users are not supposed to collect the swabs and then “spend time transporting it” to get to the test. He added the company is currently conducting a post-market study as companies do for any emergency use authorization product.
We’re seeing studies being conducted to understand the role of ID NOW in ways that it was not designed to be used. In particular, the NYU study results are not consistent with other studies. While we’ve seen a few studies with sensitivity performance percentages in the 80s, we’ve also seen other studies with sensitivity at or above 90%, and one as high as 94%.
* I asked the governor’s office for a response. Here’s Jordan Abudayyeh…
Illinois uses a wide variety of tests to make up our capacity. We are not overly reliant one specific testing method. IDPH would urge those who are presenting with COVID-19 symptoms who get a negative test result from an ID NOW machine, to obtain a second test to ensure their results are accurate. On a recent call with the White House, Dr. Birx said that Abbott’s rapid test accuracy increases when the swabs go directly from patient to machine with no other delays in the transport and IDPH would urge medical professionals to follow that advice.
The whole thing is designed to be immediate point of use. You get swabbed and then it’s put right into the machine, which is about the size of a toaster.
I was also told that out of more than 538,000 Illinois tests, just over 51,000 were ID NOW tests.
First, it was masks. The federal government sent the surgical variety, instead of the N95 respiratory-grade masks Illinois asked for and needed.
Now, swabs are the issue.
It’s the latest trouble with supplies sent to Illinois by the federal government to deal with the coronavirus. […]
Packages marked “Comforts for Baby: Cotton Swabs” arrived in a cardboard shipping box; 180-count packs that look the same as what Illinois received are selling for $1.50 on Instacart.
“What are we supposed to do with these?” a spokeswoman with the Pritzker administration said. “Not helpful.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday that despite the label, the swabs are in fact made of the polyester variety used for COVID-19 tests. […]
Upon inspection, a spokeswoman for Pritzker’s office said state public health workers found the swabs are, in fact, made of polyester rather than cotton.
But these swabs are short – the same as a Q-tip, or about the length of a finger.
Swabs used to test for COVID-19 are typically longer, roughly double in length, in order for a person to hold onto the stick end while pushing the tipped portion unsettlingly high into a nostril.
* This has been bubbling for a while. Sen. Duckworth is a solid person. Biden has said he will choose a woman running mate, but Illinois is already in the bag for the Democrats and I’m not sure that she helps drive African-Americans to the polls, so we’ll see…
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth is going to interview soon for the post of former Vice President Joe Biden’s running mate, her fellow Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin said Friday.
Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, has said he will select a woman as his running mate and announced a vice presidential search committee late last month. In recent days, speculation about Duckworth as a possibility has steadily increased as the senator has been more visible on television in recent weeks and participated in virtual events for the Biden campaign.
Asked Friday morning in Chicago about whether he thought Duckworth was a realistic possibility as Biden’s VP pick, Durbin indicated she was under consideration.
“I support Tammy Duckworth. She’s spectacular, a great colleague and I hope that she fares well in this interview, which I think is going to take place soon,” Durbin said outside the Cook County Hospital after he visited a COVID-19 testing facility. “And I’m totally in support of her.”
This is Illinois-related, but it’s also presidential politics. So take a very deep breath or three before commenting, please. Thanks.
U.S. factory production plummeted in April by the most in records back to 1919 as coronavirus-related shutdowns exacted a bigger toll on the economy.
Output slumped 13.7% from the prior month after a revised 5.5% decrease in March, Federal Reserve data showed Friday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a 14.6% decline. Overall industrial production — which also includes output at mines and utilities — dropped 11.2% in April. […]
The Fed’s report also showed capacity utilization, which measures the amount of a plant in use, slid to 64.9%, the lowest in records back to 1967. At manufacturers alone, utilization dropped to 61.1%, an all-time low in data to 1948.
Motor vehicle production slumped to a 70,000-unit annualized rate, compared with 11 million two months earlier, the Fed said.
Retail sales plunged 16.4 percent in April, a record drop and another reflection of how severely the coronavirus pandemic continues to stifle the U.S. economy.
Data released Friday from the Census Bureau blew past analyst expectations, smashing March’s revised decline of 8.3 percent. Shoppers may continue to hunt for cleaning supplies and other basic pantry items, but consumer spending, which typically drives 70 percent of the nation’s economy, remains largely hollowed out. U.S. stock futures fell off the retail news Friday morning.
The April figure reflects the weeks in which most states were still shut down. Last month, 20.5 million people abruptly lost their jobs and the national unemployment rate jumped to 14.7 percent, the highest level since the Great Depression.
Across the country, worries about having enough to eat are adding to the anxiety of millions of people, according to a survey that found 37% of unemployed Americans ran out of food in the past month and 46% said they worried about running out.
Even those who are working often struggle. Two in 10 working adults said that in the past 30 days, they ran out of food before they could earn enough money to buy more. One-quarter worried that would happen.
Those results come from the second wave of the COVID Impact Survey, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago for the Data Foundation. The survey aims to provide an ongoing assessment of the nation’s mental, physical and financial health during the pandemic. […]
Overall, those who are still working are highly confident they will have a job in one month and in three months, with more than 8 in 10 saying it’s very likely. But among those who aren’t working because they are temporarily laid off, providing care during the pandemic or looking for work, just 28% say it is highly likely that they will be employed in 30 days and 46% say it’s highly likely they’ll be working in three months. Roughly another quarter say it’s somewhat likely in 30 days and 90 days.
A Washington Post-Ipsos poll of more than 8,000 adults in late April and early May found that nearly 6 in 10 Americans who are working outside their homes were concerned that they could be exposed to the virus at work and infect other members of their household. Those concerns were even higher for some: Roughly 7 in 10 black and Hispanic workers said they were worried about getting a household member sick if they are exposed at work.
GOP lawmakers said they will wear face coverings, submit to COVID-19 tests and temperature checks and follow other safety measures when they return to Springfield
Um, the paper didn’t talk to the “right” Republicans.
* A spokesperson for Reps. Darren Bailey (R-Xenia), Brad Halbrook (R-Shelbyville) and Chris Miller (R-Oakland) told me this morning that the three Eastern Bloc members will refuse to wear face coverings during session next week.
But, if they don’t wear a mask then they won’t be allowed inside the Springfield convention center, where the House will meet. From the House’s special session plan…
All persons admitted into the building must wear a face covering at all times. Cloth masks will be provided to members and staff.
No person is entitled to the floor unless appropriately attired.
That’s never really been enforced, but I suppose it could be used next week.
The Senate has long had the same language in its own rules and it’s been strictly enforced over the years. Jackets and ties are required for men. Gov. Jim Thompson showed up on the Senate floor in a golfing shirt many moons ago and was asked to leave. Before the chamber was remodeled, a sign greeted reporters entering each press box entrance: “Gentlemen must be appropriately attired.” I tried getting one of those signs during the remodeling, but somebody else beat me to them.
* The Senate is meeting at the Statehouse next week and Senate President Harmon’s spokesman John Patterson said the chamber will use the rule to enforce the face-covering policy. Also, you’ll need to be wearing a mask to enter the Statehouse.
I asked Speaker Madigan’s spokesman Steve Brown today what would happen if a member took off his or her mask after passing through security. Would the attire rule be enforced? Brown downplayed that possibility and said Madigan was hoping all leaders would encourage their members to abide by the policy. House Republican Leader Jim Durkin’s spokesperson Eleni Demertzis said her boss had already done that and was planning to remind them again today.
* Anyone can sue anyone for anything, but the likely success of a lawsuit challenging a floor access policy appears dim. This is from the Seventh Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals in Reeder vs. Madigan…
The defendants’ decisions to deny press credentials to Reeder were inseparable from their core legislative activities. They were intimately related to the shared goal of the Illinois Senate and House to regulate access to the floors of the state House and Senate. The defendants are thus entitled to absolute legislative immunity from suit in this case, and we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court to this effect.
Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White announced today that beginning Tuesday, May 19, seven facilities will be offering drive-through services for vehicle registration sticker transactions ONLY. This is the first step in a comprehensive reopening plan that will be announced shortly and will include the proper protections for customers and employees, such as PPE and social distancing.
The seven drive-through facilities are Chicago North, Chicago South, Chicago West, Rockford-Central, Macomb, Springfield-Dirksen and Tilton. These facilities were selected due to the configuration of the buildings which allowed for drive-through transactions. All employees will wear face masks and customers are encouraged to do the same.
“My commitment is to do everything we can to help protect the health and safety of our residents, while providing services to the people of Illinois,” said White. “This first step in a reopening plan adheres to this commitment.”
• Hours of operation at Chicago North, Chicago South and Chicago West will be Monday 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Cash will not be accepted.
• Hours of operation at Rockford-Central, Macomb and Tilton will be Tuesday 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Wednesday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 7:30 a.m. to noon.
• Hours of operation at Springfield-Dirksen are Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
White continues to urge the public to renew their vehicle registration stickers online at www.cyberdriveillinois.com for those customers that can do so. Since mid-March, more than 600,000 people have renewed their stickers online, an increase of approximately 65 percent. Many customers may also renew their driver’s license online through the Safe Driver Renewal program, as well as obtain duplicate driver’s licenses and ID cards.
White is reminding the public that all expiration dates for driver’s licenses, ID cards and vehicle registrations have been extended at least 90 days after Driver Services facilities reopen.
White also reminded the public that the federal government extended the REAL ID deadline by one year. White had petitioned the federal government for this extension due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadline is now October 1, 2021.
Whenever a crisis hits, it is the most vulnerable among us that are hit the hardest. This is happening now to poor families involved with the Department of Children and Family Services.
Since March, when the COVID-19 pandemic intensified, children who were taken from their parents by DCFS have not been allowed to have supervised visits with each other or their siblings. In a blanket order, DCFS banned all supervised visits between children, parents, and siblings.
Banning supervised visits significantly harms the bond between parent and child and sets vulnerable families up for failure. […]
Many parents have very young children who cannot communicate via phone or video conferencing, and because of this ban they are deprived of the opportunity to see, touch and hold their young children. Even mothers who breastfeed their infant children are prevented from doing so. […]
Supervised visits can be done in a safe way, like all the other acceptable activities permitted during the shelter-in-place order. If we can safely prepare and distribute food, we can safely allow parents and their children to visit one another.
On March 25, DCFS suspended in-person supervised visits between parents and children in foster care because of COVID-19. The policy says phone and video conferencing can be replacements while the state is under a stay-at-home order.
Wednesday’s complaint takes a different view, including that of a clinical psychologist who warns that video and audio calls fail for children under three years old, because children that age depend on physical proximity. Mothers in the legal complaint say the lack of contact with their children is creating emotional harm.
Aaron Goldstein is chief of the civil division of the Cook County Public Defender’s office, which represents parents trying to reunite with children removed from their custody. He said even when the governor lifts the stay-at-home-order, problems remain in a system overwhelmingly poor and black.
“That means we will have had close to two months of no visits for a lot of families, and then how does that play into their case going forward?” Goldstein said. “So even if [the stay-at-home order] ends on May 31, it doesn’t end for our clients, as their case continues and potentially has some serious, serious negative impacts on reunification of bringing these families back together, which in theory is the goal of this system.”
DCFS spokesman Jassen Strokosch said the agency and its partner were finding “creative ways” for supervised visits with the aid of technology, and that judges in some counties were making allowances to facilitate in-person visits.
“We understand people’s frustration, but we want to do what’s in the best interest of children,” he said. “That includes taking into consideration parents’ needs and in maintaining a relationship and also keeping everyone safe.”
Cook County Judge Patricia Martin, who presides over Child Protective courts, said judges still are hearing “emergency” cases. While she has sympathy for parents and children in her court, Martin is trying to adhere to guidelines from DCFS and the Centers for Disease Control by limiting in-person contact, including the number of court hearings she allows. The court, she said, is looking to broaden the list of issues eligible for emergency hearings as soon as this week.
On Thursday, her office argued before Judge Caroline Kate Moreland for an emergency motion declaring the DCFS policy “unlawful.”
“Maintaining a parental relationship with one’s child is a fundamental human interest,” argued Assistant Public Defender Aaron Goldstein, adding these visits could be conducted safely with masks, social distancing and temperature screenings to protect against COVID-19. […]
But attorneys representing DCFS and the Cook County public guardian argued the case should be dismissed, claiming the suit has no merit and accusing the public defender of “forum shopping” as there’s already a prior pending case in juvenile court raising the same issues.
“The notion that DCFS is defying court orders is frankly fundamentally wrong,” Assistant Attorney General Barbara Greenspan said during Thursday’s hearing. The balance the DCFS had struck between safety and visitation ability is the “appropriate one,” she said.
…Adding… Believe it or not, the Cook County Public Guardian sided with DCFS. From his brief…
The world is in the midst of a global pandemic the likes of which has not occurred for over a century. The DCFS policy at issue requires that caseworkers identify alternative ways to allow parent/child contact during this crisis, and specifically mentions videoconferencing, telephones, etc, to continue meaningful contact during the public health crisis. The children agree with plaintiffs that the electronic visitation in the absence of in-person contact is not ideal. However, it cannot be said that the DCFS policy is patently unreasonable under the circumstances. The policy strikes a balance between the health and safety of the children, the plaintiffs, the involved caseworkers, the childrens’ caregivers and the public, and is consistent with the Governor’s emergency stay-at-home order.
U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (IL-18), John Shimkus (IL-13), Adam Kinzinger (IL-16), Rodney Davis (IL-13), and Mike Bost (IL-12) sent a letter today to Congressional Leadership urging that Congress take action to prevent governors from withholding federal funds appropriated by Congress for local municipalities that allow their small businesses to reopen in accordance with federal health guidelines, but ahead of arbitrary timelines outlined by states.
Following last week’s announcement of the “Restore Illinois” plan by Governor Pritzker, the Illinois Republican delegation heard from mayors, sheriffs, county board officials, and constituents with deep concern that the current guidelines outlined by the state will cripple the livelihoods of communities downstate. Many municipalities have laid out thoughtful, safe, and reasonable plans to reopen their communities within the federal guidelines. However, Governor Pritzker this week threatened to withhold federally appropriated funding localities that safely try to reopen in accordance with those guidelines, but ahead of his arbitrary timeline. As Congress debates additional relief legislation, the Congressmen released the following joint statement:
“One of Illinois’ great strengths is our regional diversity, and Illinoisans of all backgrounds have stepped up to slow the spread of COVID—19 and flatten the curve. Small businesses, workers, and community leaders that we represent take this virus seriously and they are prepared to take unprecedented measures to safely reopen their local economies. That’s why it’s disappointing that Governor Pritzker threaten to withhold federal funding that Congress appropriated to provide relief to those in need.
“The federal government and Congress have done a great deal to support Illinois during this challenging time. We don’t believe our governor, or any governor, should have the authority to prevent federal funding they receive that Congress appropriates from flowing to communities fighting for their livelihoods and abiding by the federal health guidelines. We urge Congress to take action and stand ready to work with our colleagues to continue providing the federal relief Illinois needs.”
While Congress should consider prohibiting Illinois from raising income taxes on small businesses as a condition of state aid, we urge you to act immediately to ensure no governor can withhold federal funds appropriated by Congress for local municipalities that allow their small businesses to reopen in accordance with federal health guidelines
* Related…
* Fact-check: Downstate congressman’s claim about Chicago’s share of Illinois COVID-19 cases is 100% wrong
After granting the troubled nursing home industry legal immunity through an executive order last month, Gov. JB Pritzker backtracked slightly and ordered that the industry can only be protected from civil liability lawsuits involving Covid-19.
On Wednesday, Pritzker eased the extension of an April order to include nursing homes in an executive order granting immunity for hospitals from lawsuits for the duration of the Covid-19 crisis. Nursing home reform advocates blasted the governor, saying he was protecting an industry rife with elderly abuse.
“To give an industry with a long history of neglect, abuse, poor staffing, poor infection control and non-preparedness for a situation like this…is a very bad idea,” said Steve Levin, a Chicago attorney who specializes in cases involving elder abuse. “It’s essentially giving them a get-out-of-jail free pass for past and current misconduct.”
Those protections now only apply to cases involving the diagnosis, treatment and transmission of Covid-19. Additionally, protections are only available to facilities that provide widespread testing of residents and staff at the homes.
Ann Spillane, Pritzker’s chief legal counsel, denied the original order was about protecting the nursing home industry from legal trouble. She suggested it was intended to address deaths that were likely to occur in facilities that were not originally designed or equipped to handle outbreaks the size of a pandemic.
“We’re asking them to go outside their normal comfort zone,’” Spillane said.
She added that, in April, there was a real danger of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities not accepting Covid-19-positive patients out of fear of liability, a situation that may have overwhelmed nearby hospitals.
However, advocates for nursing home reform say extensions should never have been extended to nursing homes in the first place, especially given the industry’s troubled reputation over many years.
Roosevelt Journigans hasn’t left his workplace in 30 days, and he just signed up to extend that streak to 45 days before he finally goes home again.
Journigans is among 120 employees of Trinity Services Inc. who during the COVID-19 pandemic have moved into residential facilities for developmentally disabled individuals in Illinois to reduce the risk of transmitting the disease.
Instead of eight or nine different staff members a day coming and going across three eight-hour shifts at the Joliet care home where he works, Journigans and two other women left their own homes behind to live 24/7 at the facility for a month.
“At first I wasn’t interested,” said Journigans, 63, who normally lives with his sister in Lockport. “It worked out pretty good.”
It’s quite a personal sacrifice, albeit one that comes with additional compensation of overtime pay and bonuses.
The sacrifice also is made easier by the special relationships that often exist between residents and workers.
“You develop bonds with them. I always worry about them. Basically, we are their family,” he said.
The so-called “stay in place” approach requires workers to cut themselves off physically from the community, almost as if they were working on an oil well at sea.
And it appears to have worked. According to Brown, just six cases and one death have occurred at Trinity’s 100 facilities.
These workers, by the way, are AFSCME Local 2690 members. Journigans is the local president.
…Adding… Kathy Carmody, the CEO of the Institute on Public Policy for People with Disabilities…
Hi Rich –
Below is an excerpt from The Institute’s testimony on Wednesday before the Senate Healthcare and Human Services Workgroup. Agencies that have moved to this staffing model are literally saving the lives of some of our most vulnerable Illinoisans. Roosevelt Journigans and others like him across the state are truly deserving of our praise and appreciation.
Community organizations supporting people in residential settings, like other sectors of the health care industry, have been forced to adapt to the current landscape and make significant changes to their business and service models. In an effort to reduce exposure among CILA residents (nearly 30% of whom are age 60+ and many of whom have co-morbid conditions), agencies have changed their staffing model where possible from a shift-staff to a live-in model. This model greatly reduces exposure and risk however it is a costly proposition which cannot continue indefinitely. In addition to paying overtime and premium wages to staff working under the live-in model, organization are also paying staff who are not working regular wages to retain them. While this approach has indisputably saved lives, it is not a long-term sustainable staffing model. You may have read the article in today’s Chicago Sun Times about Trinity Services, an Institute member and their heroic team member Mr. Roosevelt Journigans who has been living in a Trinity facility for over a month with 2 more weeks still to go. In addition to the live-in model, organizations have widely implemented enhanced wages to staff working during this period in recognition of the risks they are exposed to on a daily basis. While our direct support workforce is as heroic and essential as other members of the healthcare sector, they unfortunately, are not as identifiable as many of their peers in that space.
I will be traveling to Springfield for a few session days to pass a budget and needed COVID related legislation. Before we go it has been advised to get a COVID test even though I have no symptoms. There is no drive thru testing in DuPage county. Perhaps that may be one reason there is a perception that DuPage does not have as many cases. It took me all afternoon to set up to be tested tomorrow morning and that is by going to Melrose Park. The DuPage appointment only sites could not do anything until next week. It should not be this difficult to get a test!
Please keep it Illinois-centric and try to be nice to each other.
