chicagotribune--2020-08-28--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what happened on Aug. 28 with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

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Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Cook County is among the 30 counties the Illinois Department of Public Health sounded the alarm about Friday for a resurgence in coronavirus cases.
That’s the largest number of counties that had reached “warning level” since the agency began issuing those weekly reports earlier this summer, and the first time Cook County has been on it. The warning level applies to suburban Cook County and does not apply to the city of Chicago.
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On Friday, state health officials also announced 2,149 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 20 deaths. Overall, Illinois has reported 229,483 cases, including 7,997 deaths.
However, the official COVID-19 death toll in Illinois may not account for at least 1,000 fatalities — and potentially far more — that could be attributable to the pandemic, according to a Tribune analysis of federal data.
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Here’s what’s happening Friday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
6:40 p.m.: Layoffs, South Side clinic consolidations planned as Cook County Health grapples with pandemic, ballooning charity care
Cook County Health plans to lay off more employees and close two South Side outpatient clinics, consolidating their operations elsewhere, before the end of the year in an attempt to cut spending during a pandemic that could inflict a projected $187 million budget deficit next year.
Officials announced the potential changes Friday as the health system, which operates Stroger and Provident hospitals, faces a two-front battle against the coronavirus outbreak and the rising burden of charity care, which is uncompensated medical treatment for patients who cannot pay.
Read more here. —Alice Yin
6:15 p.m.: NU announces it won’t have freshmen and sophomores on campus and will close fraternity and sorority houses because of COVID-19
Northwestern University announced late Friday that it will not have freshmen and sophomore students back on campus for the fall term or in residencies, and will keep sorority and fraternity houses closed.
It’s a sharp departure from plans reiterated just earlier this week by Northwestern officials who spoke during a community town hall meeting reiterated their during a community town hall meeting. They said then that the campus would open but with a reduced residence hall capacity and many employees still working from home.
Read more here. —Elyssa Cherney
4:55 p.m.: Stimulus money Cook County formula meant to aid poorer towns could do more harm than good, some Southland mayors say
Some south suburban mayors say a Cook County formula that was intended to give poorer communities such as theirs a bigger share of federal COVID-19 stimulus money actually hurts more than it helps.
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They say it could result in their towns leaving hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table, money they say could greatly help them make up for revenue lost due to the pandemic.
“It’s smoke and mirrors,” said Terry Wells, mayor of Phoenix, as he and other leaders of the Southland Regional Mayoral Black Caucus shared their concerns with the Daily Southtown.
Read more here. —Mike Nolan
3:51 p.m.: After two-week shutdown and drop in new COVID-19 cases, Notre Dame will reopen
The University of Notre Dame’s president announced Friday the school plans to resume in-person classes and activities after tallying fewer daily COVID-19 cases during its temporary shift to remote instruction.
Speaking to the campus community in a video address, the Rev. John Jenkins called the move “a great comeback” and said some in-person classes will start again Wednesday. He cited a dropping positivity rate in testing but also said dozens of disciplinary hearings are scheduled for students who didn’t follow public health protocols.
Read more here. —Kelli Smith
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3:47 p.m.: Tensions rise between college towns and universities as outbreaks emerge among students returning to campus
As more and more schools and businesses around the country get the OK to reopen, college towns are moving in the opposite direction because of too much partying and too many COVID-19 infections among students.
With more than 300 students at the University of Missouri testing positive for the coronavirus and an alarming 44% positivity rate for the surrounding county, the local health director Friday ordered bars to stop serving alcohol at 9 p.m. and close by 10 p.m.
Earlier this week, Iowa’s governor ordered all bars shut down around Iowa University and Iowa State, while the mayor of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, did the same in the hometown of the state’s flagship university.
“What we’re seeing in our violations is they’re coming late at night,” said Stephanie Browning, head of the health department for Columbia, Missouri. “Big groups gathering. They’re not wearing their masks, they’re not social distancing.”
Read more here. —Associated Press
2 p.m.: Elgin restaurant owner charged with fraudulently obtaining $176,000 PPP loan
The owner of an Elgin restaurant was charged in U.S. District Court with fraudulently obtaining a $176,000 paycheck protection loan meant to keep businesses afloat during the pandemic even though she’d abruptly closed the restaurant weeks earlier and terminated all her employees.
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Melissa Turasky, 43, who ran Gifford’s Kitchen and Social restaurant, was charged with bank fraud in a two-count indictment made public Friday.
According to the charges, the popular casual-dining spot in the 2300 block of Bushwood Drive was shuttered in early March — two weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the state into lockdown — and Turasky was evicted from the property. By late March, Turasky had terminated all her employees, the indictment said.
Read more here. —Jason Meisner
1:55 p.m.: More Catholic schools delay opening because of COVID-19 cases as teachers at other Chicago-area private schools resist in-person classes
Many Archdiocesan and other private schools have now started their 2020-21 school year, while some teachers and parents continue to raise concerns about the return to in-person classes. In the Chicago area, a much larger proportion of private schools are reopening compared to public schools, which have mostly reverted to remote learning.
A group of parents and teachers, calling themselves Arch Teachers for a Safe Return, continue to demand the Archdiocese move all schools to remote learning, to provide the spread of COVID-19.
“We believe that the archdiocese is putting people in danger,” the Rev. C.J. Hawking, of Arise Chicago, an interfaith workers’ rights group, said in a press conference earlier this month.
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The Archdiocese terminated the contract of a teacher from St. Francis Xavier in Wilmette after she refused to return for in-person classes.
Other non-religious, independent private schools — some with more resources and fewer students than public schools — are also set to reopen for the fall. Some parents with the means to do so are eyeing these schools as an option to send their children back into school buildings, and many parents whose children already attend private school have also said they’re grateful to have the option.
But some educators at those schools area also hoping for an 11th-hour reprieve from in-person classes.
Read more here. —Claire Hao and Sophie Sherry
1:54 p.m.: Illinois exceeds 1.1 million mail-in ballot requests for November election, state may break previous record
More than 1.1 million Illinois voters have requested a mail-in ballot for the Nov. 3 general election following a new state law aimed at enhancing vote-by-mail efforts in response to concerns about COVID-19, state election officials said Friday.
The number of applications indicates the state will break its record for voting by mail set two years ago, when 430,000 votes or 9.3% of the total ballots were cast by mail, State Board of Elections officials said. In 2016, 370,000 votes or 6.5% of all ballots were through the mail.
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The 1.1 million figure cited by state elections officials includes 291,874 applications from Chicago, 188,941 from suburban Cook County, 116,031 from DuPage County, 72,489 from Kane County, 26,656 from Lake County, 37,526 from McHenry County and 82,238 from Will County.
Read more here. —Rick Pearson
1:12 p.m.: State adds suburban Cook County to ‘warning level’ status
Cook County is among the 30 counties the Illinois Department of Public Health sounded the alarm about Friday for a resurgence in coronavirus cases.
That’s the largest number of counties that had reached “warning level” since the agency began issuing those weekly reports earlier this summer, and the first time Cook County has been on it. State public health officials said Friday “general transmission of the virus in the community” was on the rise.
Suburban Cook County’s addition to the state’s weekly warning list was triggered by 112 new cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people, well above the state-set target of staying under 50 new cases per 100,000 people. An increase in the number of deaths, 25 compared with 15 the prior week, was the other factor. The state’s goal is that the number of deaths declines or remains level from week to week.
County officials said the regulations that are in place now for bars and restaurants, fitness centers and other activities will remain consistent, but warned that if the county continues to see a backslide, additional rules may be imposed.
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“The guidance will remain the same for now,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said in a statement. “But we are at a crossroads. We need everyone to wear a mask, watch their distance and wash their hands consistently to slow the spread of COVID-19 so we don’t lose the gains we have made.”
The warning level applies to suburban Cook County and does not apply to the city of Chicago.
Read more here. —Jamie Munks
1:03 p.m.: Babysitter bidding wars: As Chicago parents shell out $25 per hour, paid vacation and $1,000 signing bonuses during pandemic, ‘wealthiest families win out’
She expected to pay a nanny about $16-$20 an hour to care for one baby in Chicago’s easily accessible Lakeview neighborhood.
But when Hannah, a lawyer who didn’t want to use her last name to protect her family’s privacy, called a nanny search firm in March, she was told that demand was higher than usual, and that she should offer $18-$20.
Then, when interviews began, several nannies quoted rates as high as $25 an hour.
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“We heard a couple of different (explanations),” Hannah said. “One was the market was more competitive and nannies were having several offers on the table. One of my friends who had a couple nannies turn her down was told, ‘I already have other offers.’”
With day care centers closing due to COVID-19, and parents seeking e-learning assistance for their children, nannies and sitters are in high demand, and now there are indications that pay is on the rise. Qualified sitters are getting minimum starting pay of about $18 an hour, up from $16 before COVID-19, according to Tori Ulrich, president of the child care search firm Chicago Super Sitters.
Read more here. —Nara Schoenberg
12:17 p.m.: COVID-19′s true toll in Illinois is likely higher than reported. A closer look at ‘excess deaths’ in 2020.
The Tribune, in its analysis of CDC data, found unusual rises in deaths labeled as flu/pneumonia in the early stages of the pandemic — as early as two weeks before Illinois logged its first official COVID-19 death. Health officials have said it could be easy to mistake COVID-19 for the flu or pneumonia, particularly when testing was scarce and knowledge of the virus limited.
Other possible contributing factors to the state’s overall higher death toll: larger-than-normal numbers of deaths blamed on heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes and stroke. Add to that the more publicized jumps in homicides, suicides and fatal drug overdoses in communities that the virus has also hit hard.
Read more here. —Joe Mahr
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12:13 p.m.: Young NWI residents talk life during pandemic, watch peers continue as normal: ‘Many are unaware they’re infected’
Lisa Tanis said when COVID-19 cases began picking up in Northwest Indiana, her doctor told her, then pregnant, that she needed to be cautious.
So she stayed home — and continued staying home.
“We had groceries delivered, didn’t see our friends, and barely even saw our parents,” Tanis, 26, of Dyer, said. “When we did see our parents, it was always outside at a distance.”
Since Tanis’ had her son, Nolan, on July 22 and the state enacted a mask mandate, she said her and her husband, Aaron, 26, have met up with few family members and friends to let them meet him, though they’ve continued limiting the places they go to.
“The only thing I have regularly done is go for walks, which kept me sane,” Tanis, 26, said. “I haven’t eaten at a restaurant except for takeout since February and I’ve only been to the grocery store a handful of times.”
Even though some, like Tanis, are staying home, cases in the area continue.
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Read more here. —Hannah Reed, Post-Tribune
12:09 p.m.: 2,149 new known COVID-19 cases, 20 additional deaths
The state Department of Public Health announced 2,149 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 20 deaths. Overall, Illinois has reported 229,483 cases, including 7,997 deaths.
—Chicago Tribune staff
12:06 p.m.: Two public relations experts at FDA ousted after blood plasma treatment for COVID-19 error
Two senior public relations experts advising the Food and Drug Administration have been ousted from their positions after fumbled communications about a blood plasma treatment for COVID-19. President Donald Trump and the head of the FDA had erroneously boasted on the eve of the Republican National Convention that the treatment sharply lowered mortality from the disease.
On Friday, the FDA commissioner, Dr. Stephen M. Hahn, removed Emily Miller, the agency’s chief spokeswoman. The White House had installed Miller, who had previously worked in communications for the reelection campaign of Sen. Ted Cruz and as a journalist for One America News, the conservative cable network, in this post just 11 days ago.
Hahn notified senior leadership at the FDA on Friday that Miller would no longer be the official spokeswoman for the agency, and that he would be appointing someone to replace her in an interim capacity. Miller could not be reached for comment.
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Miller’s removal came one day after the FDA’s parent agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, terminated the contract of a public relations consultant who had advised Hahn to correct misleading comments about the benefits of blood plasma for COVID-19.
Read more here. —The New York Times
10:15 a.m.: With many struggling to buy food during the pandemic, grassroots efforts have stepped up. ‘It’s my motivation to get up in the morning.’
Food insecurity, when people don’t have enough money to buy the food they need to live a healthy life, is projected to affect a record 54 million in the U.S. this year, up from 37 million pre-pandemic, according to the hunger-relief nonprofit Feeding America and Craig Gundersen, a professor of agricultural and consumer economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Some fear the need could increase if government assistance fails to come through for those who continue to be out of work because of COVID-19.
Normally, food insecurity in Cook County is about 10%. As a result of the pandemic it is projected to affect 15% of residents — and 20% of children.
There is vast disparity by race. Among Chicago zip codes, the 10 with the highest rates of food insecurity are in neighborhoods that are more than 90% black, according to Gundersen’s analysis . In zip code 60621, which is in Englewood, researchers project food insecurity this year to reach 41%.
Read more here. —Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz
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6:30 a.m.: Illinois counties rush to finalize early voting sites amid looming election deadlines, COVID-19 concerns
Illinois election authorities are confronting higher levels of pushback from polling sites wary of hosting this year because of concerns and closures related to COVID-19. With early voting scheduled to begin Oct. 19, and the deadline to finalize sites set for early September, election administrators don’t have much time left.
“It’s been difficult,” McHenry County Clerk Joseph Tirio said. “We have received word from a number of locations — and that changes from day to day — that no longer wish to participate.”
Election authorities can order public buildings or schools in their jurisdiction to host early or Election Day voting, according to state law. Privately-owned sites, however, have more say in whether or not to participate in the election — and many are choosing to withdraw from earlier agreements, primarily because of coronavirus-related health concerns, closures or lack of adequate spacing to accommodate social distancing.
“There’s always a lot of effort that goes into acquiring voting locations and so this year it’s just an even more intense process than usual,” said Adam Johnson, chief deputy of the DuPage County clerk’s office.
Read more here. —Kelli Smith
6:15 a.m.: Judge orders U.S. Postal Service to turn over records on changes
A federal judge in Washington state is giving the Trump administration and the U.S. Postal Service 10 days to turn over records and information about service changes that critics say could undermine mail-in voting in the November election.
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More than 20 states filed lawsuits last week over the changes, including 14 states that sued in U.S. District Court in Yakima.
U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian on Thursday granted the states’ request to speed up discovery in that case. The Justice Department opposed the request, saying that much of the information the states are seeking is already in the public record, including in congressional testimony, and that responding to the states’ requests within 10 days would be burdensome.
Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said many questions remain about the Postal Service’s actions, whether the changes such as the removal of sorting equipment are being reversed, and whether mail delays will continue. He noted the case isn’t just about the timely delivery of mail-in ballots, but also about the delivery of prescriptions, Social Security benefits and other items people depend on.
Among the information sought by the states is a list of all mail sorting machines identified for decommissioning, including their locations, and whether they will be reinstalled if they have already been decommissioned.
—Associated Press
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Here are five stories from Thursday about COVID-19:


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--‘Shots fired! 10-1!’ Two Chicago police officers, suspect shot on West Side

The officers , both men , were taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County and were both @ @ @ @ @ stable , ’ ' condition , said police spokesman Tom Ahern .
One was shot @ @ @ @ @ while the other just the arm .

Chicago police officers gather outside the emergency area of Stroger Hospital after two officers were wounded in a shooting during a traffic stop in the Homan Square neighborhood early on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
A man shot two Chicago police officers and police returned fire during a traffic stop on the West Side, police said early Sunday.
The officers, both men, were taken to Stroger Hospital. Doctors were able to stabilize the officers’ wounds and as of Sunday afternoon, one officer remained in serious condition and the other officer had been upgraded to good condition, according to Officer Ana Pacheco, a police spokeswoman. One was shot in the chest and arm; the other just in the arm.
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Numerous police officers gathered outside the hospital into the early morning. Chicago police could not confirm if either officer had been discharged.
Chicago police officers gather outside the emergency area of Stroger Hospital after two Chicago police officers were wounded in a shooting during a traffic stop in Chicago's Homan Square neighborhood early on Sunday Aug. 30, 2020. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Chicago police officers salute an unmarked vehicle as it leaves the emergency area of Stroger Hospital. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
The shooting happened when the officers pulled someone over in the 3300 block of West Polk Street in the city’s Homan Square neighborhood about 2:35 a.m., said Officer Guadalupe Sanchez, a police spokesman.
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The officers, part of a summer mobile unit assigned to target hot spots of violence in the city, stopped the vehicle because it matched the description from a call about a “person with a gun,” police said in a statement.
At one point before the shooting, the officers asked for help because the person in the car, who had a gun, had locked the door of the car.
“Can you roll us one more car over here to, ah, Polk and Homan?” one of the injured officers was heard asking a dispatcher.
“I made a traffic stop ... an individual’s in the vehicle locked himself in the car — he’s got a firearm in the car,” the officer said.
Seconds later, the stop took a grim turn. Officers who arrived to provide backup called a 10-1, which is an emergency call for an officer needing assistance. The officers said a struggle ensued and shots had been fired and multiple officers were down after attempting to arrest the suspect.
“Shots fired! 10-1!’ an officer screamed. “Shots fired! Shots fired!”
“10-1, 10-1,” he yelled.
“Two officers down. Offender down,” another assisting officer told the dispatcher.
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The suspect, who fired multiple rounds at officers, also had his injuries stabilized but remained in serious condition at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, police spokesman Tom Ahern said.
It was not clear which officer shot the suspect, but the suspect’s gun was found on the scene, police said.
Offender’s Firearm recovered at scene of two Officers shot at Polk & Spaulding this AM pic.twitter.com/Los3wbZEWC — Tom Ahern (@TomAhernCPD) August 30, 2020
A media staging area was set up outside the emergency room of Stroger Hospital, where a news conference was held. Police Superintendent David Brown also briefed a large group of officers on the situation.
Details, including a “comprehensive use of force investigation,” will be sought by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability and the Police Department.
Per protocol, the officers involved will be placed on routine administrative duties for 30 days.
Superintendent Brown addresses concerned officers and provides an update on the two officers who were shot while conducting a traffic stop overnight. pic.twitter.com/pl6U4Z5btT — Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) August 30, 2020
Chicago Tribune reporter Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas contributed.
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chicagotribune--2020-08-30--‘Daddy, why’d they shoot me so many times?’ Jacob Blake’s father recalls in emotional remarks during

‘Daddy, why’d they shoot me so many times?’ Jacob Blake’s father recalls in emotional remarks during Kenosha rally against police violence

Protesters have filled Kenosha ’ s streets every night , and on Tuesday , two people were killed by an @ @ @ @ @ of the National Guard said Friday that more than 1,000 Guard members had been deployed @ @ @ @ @ , and more were on the way .

KENOSHA, Wis. — Nearly one week after a Kenosha police officer shot Jacob Blake Jr. seven times in the back, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down, thousands of people joined Blake’s family to march through the streets of Kenosha on Saturday afternoon, calling for racial equality.
A fiery and sometimes emotional Jacob/ Blake Sr. began speaking to the crowd as the march wrapped up around 4 p.m., recounting what his son asked him when he visited him in the hospital.
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“He said, ’Daddy, why’d they shoot me so many times?’” said Blake Sr., who didn’t march, though several other relatives did, including an uncle and Blake’s sister, Latetra Widman.
Blake Sr., who spoke Friday at the March on Washington, said he would protect his son and stand up for him when he cannot stand up.
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“You cannot imagine what it feels like to look at your baby paralyzed from the waist down,” he said.
“What gave them the right to attempted murder on my child?” Blake Sr. said. “What gave them the right to treat my son like an animal?”
The rally stepped off, just after 2 p.m.
[ Police in Kenosha bash out van window, arrest members of group that serves food at protests ]
“Seven bullets, seven days!” the crowd chanted.
From Milwaukee to Chicago to Indianapolis, people descended from the Midwest to partake in the demonstration.
“I’m here to support my people,” said David Williams, who traveled from Chicago.
Carrying signs that read “Justice for Jacob” and “The Time for Change is Now,” demonstrators marched through the streets of Kenosha, calling for justice for Blake.
The shooting sparked several days of civil disorder in Kenosha, a city of 100,000 people, including arson, looting, some peaceful protest and a separate civilian shooting where two men were killed. Kenosha authorities imposed a 7 p.m. curfew that was blatantly ignored by protesters night after night.
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[ Kenosha chief defends cops’ action in letting Kyle Rittenhouse leave scene of deadly shooting; handcuffs taken off Jacob Blake ]
There have been waves of protests since Blake’s shooting, but this march was by far the largest as thousands of people flooded Kenosha’s streets, before packing into Civic Center Park for a rally.
”I want to thank the Kenosha Police Department for showing us their true colors,” Widman, Blake’s sister, said. “And I want to thank you again for recharging my melanin.”
Widman, who was surrounded by family members as she spoke on a stage, then recited a poem as most of the crowd held fists in the air.
“We are heartbroken and enraged, but we are steadfast in our demand for justice,” Tanya Mclean, a Blake family friend who helped organize the event, said in a statement. She said Blake’s shooting is not an isolated incident, but part of a “brutal, racist system.”
Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 95 Madison Taft and Black Lives Matter activists march through a Kenosha neighborhood Jan. 5, 2021, after news that no charges will be issued against the Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
“We’re here to demand an end to police violence and systemic racism in Kenosha,” Mclean said. “No more piecemeal reforms and useless committees. No more Band-Aid solutions over the bullet wounds. The time for transformational change is now.”
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Kenosha police Officer Rusten Sheskey was responding to a domestic abuse call on Sunday when he shot Blake seven times in the back. Blake is paralyzed from the shooting, his family said, and is recovering in a Milwaukee hospital.
The shooting, which was captured on cellphone video, sparked new protests against racial injustice and police brutality, just three months after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police touched off a wider reckoning on race.
Protesters have filled Kenosha’s streets every night, and on Tuesday, two people were killed by an armed civilian. The commander of the National Guard said Friday that more than 1,000 Guard members had been deployed to help keep the peace, and more were on the way.
Investigators have said little about what led to Blake’s shooting. The Kenosha police union said Blake had a knife and fought with officers, putting one of them in a headlock as two efforts to stun him with a Taser were unsuccessful.
In the cellphone footage recorded by a bystander, Blake walks from the sidewalk around the front of an SUV to his driver-side door as officers follow him with their guns drawn and shout at him. As Blake opens the door and leans into the SUV, an officer grabs his shirt from behind and opens fire. Three of Blake’s children were in the vehicle.
The man who recorded the video, 22-year-old Raysean White, said he heard police yell at Blake, “Drop the knife! Drop the knife!” before gunfire erupted. White said he didn’t see a knife in Blake’s hands. State investigators have said only that officers saw a knife on the floor of the car.
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Ben Crump, an attorney for Blake’s family, has said Blake did nothing to provoke police and has called for Sheskey’s arrest.
Chicago Tribune reporter Javonte Anderson reported from Kenosha. The Associated Press contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Despite earlier tiff with CPD, rabbi leads protesters to briefly close Mag Mile in vigil for lost Bl

Despite earlier tiff with CPD, rabbi leads protesters to briefly close Mag Mile in vigil for lost Black lives

The standoff began about 6:30 p.m. and ended more than half an hour later when Yosef relented and took Brooks @ @ @ @ @ march south on Michigan .
The protesters returned to their original spot in front of @ @ @ @ @ the southbound lanes as they circled up around a ring of signs with the names @ @ @ @ @ .
Burning candles dotted the ground .

Rabbi Michael Ben Yosef speaks during a rally at the Wrigley Building in the 400 block of North Michigan Avenue on Aug. 29, 2020, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Rabbi Michael Ben Yosef had been in this situation before: leading a crowd of a couple hundred protesters, promising to block traffic in a march honoring lost Black lives — but unable to walk on the roads due to a wall of Chicago police officers.
“You’re disrespecting the stolen lives,” Yosef told Glen Brooks, director of public engagement for Chicago police, through a megaphone about 6:50 p.m. Saturday on East Ohio Street at North Michigan Avenue. “You did it to me once on the Dan Ryan, now you’re doing it to me again? You’re doing it to me again, Brooks.”
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Yosef, president of humanitarian group Tikkun Chai Inter-National, was referencing his failed attempt on Aug. 15 to occupy the Dan Ryan Expressway to make a statement against police brutality in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Chicago police officers and Illinois State Police troopers in riot gear blocked the 47th Street entrance, and eventually, Yosef rerouted his march through neighborhoods until reaching Grant Park.
This time, the rabbi had led a similar-sized crowd from the Wrigley Building north up Michigan Avenue and planned to place dozens of signs printed with the names of those killed by law enforcement on the ground, light white candles and pray. But when they arrived at the Ohio Street intersection, a line of Chicago police officers blocked their way onto the streets with their bikes.
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Yosef said the police would not let him through because his crowd was too small, but Brooks did not respond to questions regarding the reason. He told Yosef he had four options for his march: south on the streets of Michigan Avenue until the river, Ontario Street one block north, Ohio Street or north on Michigan Avenue’s sidewalk only.
“What are you going to do?” Yosef spoke over Brooks. “You going to beat our black bodies, or you’re going to give us the same space as rich white people?”
Brooks responded, “You got people out here. I think it’s important what you’re doing. I got those four options for you. ... Think about it. I’ll be back.”
The standoff began about 6:30 p.m. and ended more than half an hour later when Yosef relented and took Brooks up on his offer to march south on Michigan. The protesters returned to their original spot in front of the Wrigley Building and occupied southbound lanes as they circled up around a ring of signs with the names of people killed by police. Burning candles dotted the ground.
About 7:20 p.m., Yosef began a prayer for what he said were all the stolen lives in America: those who died at the hands of police and gun violence as well as Black women who were murdered or went missing.
“Father we ask you this: give us comfort and strength,” Yosef said. “Help us to defund these police that don’t have justice for us.”
Shortly afterward, he asked the crowd to disperse because he wanted the event to end peacefully. His supporters picked up the makeshift vigil and filed south on the sidewalk of Michigan Avenue, chanting “Black lives matter!” to diners on the Riverwalk below them.
No one was arrested by the time protesters went home, according to Chicago police.
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Zero arrests were made during this evening’s peaceful protest downtown. Thank you to EVERYONE who helped keep our downtown area safe. We will always facilitate & protect your First Amendment Rights in a safe manner, while ensuring the safety of residents, property & businesses. — Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) August 30, 2020
Heavier than normal police presence is seen in the 400 block of North Michigan Avenue on Aug. 29, 2020, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Earlier in the day, Yosef stood on the sidewalk in front of Wrigley Building to condemn police brutality and demand the city defund the police and allocate that money toward social services.
“These are the names,” he said before pulling taut the white string with the signs. “You tell me why I’m pissed off.”
The mother of Richard Risher, an 18-year-old Black man who was killed by Los Angeles police in 2016 during what police described as a “gun battle,” also spoke in front of Wrigley Building and called for abolishing the police.
“The police ain’t here to protect us,” Lisa Simpson said. “Their job is to protect these corporations. ... We don’t need them in our communities anyway. We got strong brothers and sisters, men and women that can police our own communities.”
Yosef also pushed back against the criticism he received both from social media users who speculated his “shutdown” would lead to looting or violence and from other activist groups who distanced themselves from the event.
Saturday morning, the youth-led group Good Kids Mad City tweeted it would not be at Yosef’s protest because he has not been working with them and other local activist groups, such as Black Lives Matter Chicago. India Jackson, a group member, told the Tribune Yosef was “co-opting the movement.”
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“Coalition building is important for social justice movements because we’re stronger united than we are individually,” Jackson wrote in a text. “We don’t know this man, don’t know anything about him, and don’t want to be associated with him.”
🗣PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD! WE WILL NOT BE DOWNTOWN TODAY PROTESTING! WE DONT KNOW THIS MAN! HE HASN’T BEEN ORGANIZING, BUILDING COMMUNITY OR WORKING IN COALITION! THE MEDIA IS PROMOTING HIM! THIS ISN’T A #BlackLivesMatter MARCH! Keep Miracle name out your mouth G!#MagMile pic.twitter.com/7PvjPZOwT6 — GoodKidsMadCity (@GKMC18) August 29, 2020
When asked about the flak, Yosef defended his decision to lead the march without those groups, but he added that the door is open for future collaboration.
“I will work with anybody that has a heart and soul for the purpose of the agenda that I’m standing on,” Yosef said. “There is always opportunity to sit and talk and negotiate and air grievances because, again, we’re fighting the same oppression.”
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-08-31--Evanston residents, leaders grieve, pray and demand change following the shooting of Jacob Blake

Residents and church members attend a service hosted by the Ebenezer AME Church in support of Jacob Blake and his @ @ @ @ @ market lot on Aug. 30 , 2020 , in Evanston , Ill. Blake 's grandfather @ @ @ @ @ Ebenezer AME Church in Evanston and active in the civil rights movement .

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 11 Residents and church members attend a service hosted by Ebenezer AME Church in support of Jacob Blake and his family at the Evanston farmers market lot on Aug. 30, 2020, in Evanston. Blake's grandfather was a pastor at the church and active in the civil rights movement. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Residents and church members attend a service hosted by Ebenezer AME Church in support of Jacob Blake and his family at the Evanston farmers market lot on Aug. 30, 2020, in Evanston. Blake's grandfather was a pastor at the church and active in the civil rights movement.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Teen killed in Waukegan’s 3rd deadly shooting in a week

Witnesses in the area of the crime scene told police a dark colored SUV left the area at a high @ @ @ @ @ shots were fired , according to the release .
It is unknown if the vehicle @ @ @ @ @ police have a photo of the vehicle of interest from surveillance video .

Taken by surveillance video, this SUV was seen leaving the scene of a homicide at a high rate of speed shortly after shots were fired. (Waukegan Police Department / HANDOUT)
A Waukegan teenager became the third homicide shooting victim within a week Friday night after a police officer and residents in the 700 block of North Green Bay Road heard gunfire, according to a press release from the Waukegan Police Department.
The 15-year-old boy was found by a Waukegan police officer around 9:45 p.m. Friday shortly after the officer heard a scream and a gunshot while in a commercial parking lot in the 700 block of North Green Bay Road, police Commander Joe Florip said in a telephone interview Sunday.
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The teen died at the scene, police said. About the time the officer heard the shot, police began receiving calls informing the department gunshots were heard in the same area.
Currently under inquiry by the department’s Criminal Investigation Unit, police said in the release this is an active homicide investigation. The motive is unknown and no one is in custody.
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Witnesses in the area of the crime scene told police a dark colored SUV left the area at a high rate of speed after the shots were fired, according to the release. It is unknown if the vehicle is involved. Florip said police have a photo of the vehicle of interest from surveillance video.
“It’s tragic,” Florip said. “Any time a young life is lost like this, it’s very tragic.”
Within the last week, Annie Nunnally, 63, of North Chicago, was fatally shot Aug. 22 as she tried to break up a fight during a party in the 600 block of McAllister Avenue in Waukegan.
Damar McDonald, 32, of Waukegan is being sought on a first degree murder warrant in connection with the Nunnally shooting. Achley Cruz-Oquendo, 32, of Waukegan, was arrested Tuesday on charges of obstruction of justice in the same case.
A few days later, a Chicago man was found dead from an apparent gunshot wound Wednesday in a motel on North Green Bay Road.
“This is highly unusual,” Florip said. “I can’t remember the last time we’ve seen this much violence in such a short period of time,” the 25-year veteran of the department said. “Based on the individual cases, it’s hard draw any type of correlation.”
Lake County Coroner Howard Cooper has scheduled an autopsy Tuesday. Once the examination is complete and family notifications are complete, the victim’s name will be released, officials said.
Anyone with information on the shooting or the vehicle sought as part of the investigation should call the Waukegan Police Department’s tip line at 847-360-9001.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--5 people shot, 1 fatally, outside restaurant in Morgan Park, Chicago police say

A 44-year-old woman suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach and buttock , according to police , and a 32-year-old @ @ @ @ @ each shot in the thigh .
The three were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center @ @ @ @ @ police said .
A 30-year-old woman was shot in the foot and was taken to @ @ @ @ @ Center in good condition , police said .

William Lee, Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas, Morgan Greene

Police officers work at the scene where five people were shot, one fatally, at Lumes Pancake House in the 11600 block of South Western Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, in Chicago's Morgan Park neighborhood. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Diners were lunching under a tent at Lumes Pancake House on the Far Southwest Side on a bright Sunday afternoon when a white Audi pulled into the parking lot and three gunmen got out.
Walking into the tent, they aimed at a table where three women and two men sat and fired at least 40 times before jumping back into the car and speeding off, according to Chicago police.
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As the Audi fled south on Western Avenue, someone ran from the tent and fired. He also fled the scene and a gun was found in a yard nearby,” police said.
Witnesses described a frantic scene under the tent, where a man lay dying and four others were wounded around 1:50 p.m. Several said the restaurant in the 11600 block of South Western Avenue is a popular Sunday destination for families leaving church.
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Chicago police officers work at the scene where five people were shot, one fatally, at Lumes Pancake House in the 11600 block of South Western Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 30, in the Morgan Park neighborhood. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune)
“This is senseless,” said Tawana Jackson, whose cousin was having breakfast with her husband and grandchild when the shooting started.
“Her grandbaby is sitting with her there, 2 months old. And y’all shoot when you see a 2-month-old baby? That’s outrageous,” Jackson said. “You kind of get used to it, you see it every day on the news. These babies, they don’t care.”
Chicago police said Devon Welsh, the 31-year-old man who was killed, was shot multiple times and apparently was “targeted” by the gunmen. “They stood over him after he was shot,” said Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan said.
Police gave no motive and reported no arrests.
Four other people were wounded: A 44-year-old woman shot in the stomach and buttocks and a 32-year-old woman and a 32-year-old man shot in the thigh were stabilized at Advocate Christ Medical Center. A 30-year-old woman was shot in the foot and was taken to Little Company of Mary Medical Center in good condition, police said.
A woman at the scene said the man killed was her nephew, and his brother was fatally shot last year. He was having a meal with the mother of his 3-month-old daughter and the child, said the woman, who didn’t want to be identified.
“He was a cool guy, got along with a lot of people. (He) always joked around,” she said. “A lot of people loved him. I’m not saying he was perfect, but he was a good one.”
Lumes cook Martin Puente said the shots set off panic inside the tent.
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“I’ve never seen anything (like this) before,” said Puente, 26, an employee for four months. “There was a lot of people running around in the restaurant.”
The shooting was an attack on Sunday morning rituals that start with church and end with a meal, the Rev. Donovan Price told reporters across the street from the restaurant.
“This place is a staple. Sunday afternoon, Sunday morning brunch is a staple,” Price said. “Our staples are being taken away and our traditions are being taken away.
“And slowly, but surely, our hope is being taken away,” he added.
Community activist Andrew Holmes pleaded with witnesses to come forward and help investigators.
“Someone’s grandmother could have been sitting there. Little kids could have been sitting there, and they do come here,” he said. “Why jump out of a car and fire a weapon in the first place?”
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wlee@chicagotribune.com
jgorner@chicagotribune.com
mgreene@chicagotribune.com
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Chicago police respond to 10 shootings in about 3 hours Sunday, including 3 homicides and an attack

Chicago police respond to 10 shootings in about 3 hours Sunday, including 3 homicides and an attack that left 2 officers seriously wounded

Not 10 minutes later , just down the street in the 7100 block of South Honore Street , a 32-year-old @ @ @ @ @ .
He said it was a stray bullet fired by an unknown person “ who @ @ @ @ @ down the street , ” according to police .
He was taken to Advocate Christ @ @ @ @ @ , where he was listed in serious condition .
No arrests had been made in @ @ @

Chicago police officers gather outside the emergency area of Stroger Hospital after two officers were wounded in a shooting during a traffic stop in the Homan Square neighborhood early on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
In a little more than three hours beginning around 2 a.m. Sunday, Chicago police responded to 10 separate shootings, including three homicides and an attack on two officers who exchanged gunfire with an armed assailant.
All told, 10 people were wounded and three people died during the shootings — which were mainly concentrated on the South and West sides — the most recent at 5:25 a.m.
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At 2:09 a.m., officers responded to the South Chicago neighborhood on the Far South Side where they launched a homicide investigation after finding a man unresponsive in the 8400 block of South Commercial Avenue. The city’s gunshot detection system, ShotSpotter, picked up eight rounds in the area, prompting the call. Authorities said a 61-year-old man had been shot in the head and he was pronounced dead on scene.
Less than 30 minutes later, the two officers and the man they said shot them were being treated for gunshot wounds suffered in the 3300 block of West Polk Street in the West Side Homan Square neighborhood. One officer was in good condition, and the other officer and the alleged gunman were in serious but stable condition, officials said.
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Police first conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle whose driver matched a description from an earlier “person with a gun” call, and the man apparently locked himself inside the vehicle, but not before officers caught sight of the gun.
Seconds later, officers who arrived to provide backup called a 10-1, which is an emergency call for an officer needing assistance. The officers said a struggle ensued and shots had been fired and multiple officers were down after attempting to arrest the suspect.
About 2:45 a.m., officers were called to the 6400 block of South Honore Street in West Englewood where a 22-year-old man was shot in the leg during a drive-by shooting. He was treated at the University of Chicago Hospital, where he had been listed in fair condition.
Not 10 minutes later, just down the street in the 7100 block of South Honore Street, a 32-year-old was shot in the stomach. He said it was a stray bullet fired by an unknown person “who was arguing with another man down the street,” according to police. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was listed in serious condition. No arrests had been made in either shooting.
In between the two West Englewood shootings, at 2:49 a.m. police responded to the 700 block of West 60th Street in Englewood. A man, 28, said he was walking when he was shot in his lower backside and did not know where the shots came from. He was driven by a friend to St. Bernard Hospital and later transferred to Stroger Hospital, where he was in good condition.
At 3:24 a.m. two people were shot in the 5900 block of West Huron Street in the South Austin neighborhood on the West Side. A man, 29, was shot in the left thigh and a woman, 25, suffered a graze wound to her head. Both were taken to West Suburban Hospital, where they were listed in good condition.
About 3:40 a.m. police were called to the 900 block of West Garfield Boulevard in the Back of the Yards neighborhood to investigate another homicide. A man, 29, was found unresponsive in an alley with a gunshot wound to the head. Officers said the man was shot after leaving a party; he was taken to the University of Chicago Hospital in critical condition and pronounced dead a short time later.
A 29-year-old man was grazed in the foot by a bullet while he was pumping gas about 4:50 a.m. in the 2800 block of South Kedzie Avenue in Little Village. He was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.
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Another homicide investigation was launched about 5 a.m. in the South Side neighborhood of Gresham where two people were shot in the 1100 block of West 87th Street, police said.
A man, 34, was standing outside when he was shot in the face and upper body by two unknown men on foot. A woman, 36, was standing just inside the doorway of a home and she was shot in the foot and taken to Little Company of Mary Hospital, where she was in fair condition.
The man was taken to Advocate Christ in critical condition, and he later was pronounced dead.
About 30 minutes later, a 23-year-old woman was shot in the chest in the 2300 block of South Homan Avenue, in Little Village. She arrived at Mount Sinai Hospital in a private vehicle and was listed in critical condition. She said she was walking on the sidewalk when she was shot about 5:25 a.m. No arrests have been made.
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--COVID-19 in Illinois by the numbers: Here’s a daily update on cases, positivity rate and hospital da

COVID-19 in Illinois by the numbers: Here’s a daily update on cases, positivity rate and hospital data in your area

Among the metrics ( see below ) tracked under guidelines set by Gov .
J.B. Pritzker are the percentage of @ @ @ @ @ , the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19-like illnesses , and the capacity of hospitals @ @ @ @ @ state will decide how much or how little to restrict activities based on these metrics @

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
To assess how different parts of Illinois are handling the COVID-19 pandemic, officials look at the state through the 11 regions of Emergency Medical Services. The city of Chicago is one region, for example, and the rest of Cook County is another.
Among the metrics (see below) tracked under guidelines set by Gov. J.B. Pritzker are the percentage of coronavirus tests that return positive, the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19-like illnesses, and the capacity of hospitals to take in new patients.The state will decide how much or how little to restrict activities based on these metrics. (Cases, deaths and tests data is as of Dec. 31).
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus.
• Other Chicago, suburbs and Illinois COVID-19 metrics.
• See how the governor’s plan to manage the regions works.
Source: Illinois Department of Public Health
Created by the Chicago Tribune dataviz team. On Twitter @chitribgraphics


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood

Search below by street address , ZIP code or city , then click on the map to see the number @ @ @ @ @ state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer .

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
Illinois releases the number of positive COVID-19 cases by ZIP code daily. The map below shows the cumulative cases for each area as well as other analysis of the data.
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Tracking daily Illinois coronavirus deaths, cases and tests.
Search below by street address, ZIP code or city, then click on the map to see the number of confirmed and probable cases. The state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer.
Data as of June 10.
The map search tool above works best in Chrome or Firefox and may not perform consistently in Internet Explorer.
Note: Because of a coding error this map was displaying the incorrect rates for new cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people — the issue should now be resolved.. The Tribune adjusted the data shown on the map below to focus on new cases, those the state tracked in the last 7 seven days. The totals for the entire pandemic are still available, but in the pop-up after tapping or clicking on a ZIP.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--2 Chicago police officers recovering after being shot by a man early Sunday on West Side; officers r

2 Chicago police officers recovering after being shot by a man early Sunday on West Side; officers returned fire

The officers , both men , were taken to Stroger Hospital .
Doctors were able to stabilize the officers ’ @ @ @ @ @ afternoon , one officer remained in serious condition and the other officer had been upgraded @ @ @ @ @ to Officer Ana Pacheco , a police spokeswoman .
One was shot in the chest @ @ @ @ @ just in the arm .

Rosemary Sobol, Jeremy Gorner, Jessica Villagomez


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 11 new deaths, 1,992 new confirmed cases and 43,693 new test resu

Daily Illinois coronavirus graphs: 11 new deaths, 1,992 new confirmed cases and 43,693 new test results

Illinois announced 1,992 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 Sunday for a total of 233,355 .
The state also announced 11 @ @ @ @ @ of 8,019 and 43,693 new test results for a total of 4 million .

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine tracked coronavirus cases, deaths and test totals from Jan. 22, 2020 through March 10, 2023, but is no longer providing this data. These charts will no longer be updated.
Check the Illinois Department of Public Health for the most up-to-date data for Illinois.
[ Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus ]
Can’t see these charts? Go here.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--University of Chicago students call for defunding, abolishing school police during rally outside uni

University of Chicago students call for defunding, abolishing school police during rally outside university president’s house

“ Those are who keeps you safe , ” Wright said through a megaphone .
“ We keep us safe @ @ @ @ @ to fight to abolish this ( expletive ) system , not reform it , because @ @ @ @ @ what it ’ s intended to do .
And we ’ re also going to @ @ @ @ @ to serve people , to serve us .
”

People gather to hear speakers before marching to demand the defunding of the University of Chicago Police Department on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
At least 50 University of Chicago student organizers and other community members rallied in front of the university president’s house Saturday afternoon before marching on the South Side as part of ongoing efforts to persuade university leaders to defund, and eventually abolish, the school’s private police force.
Standing along East 59th Street at South University Avenue about 3:30 p.m., Madeline Wright, a student organizer, told members of the crowd to look at fellow students to their left and right.
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“Those are who keeps you safe,” Wright said through a megaphone. “We keep us safe. We’re going to fight to abolish this (expletive) system, not reform it, because it’s doing exactly what it’s intended to do. And we’re also going to focus on transforming our communities to serve people, to serve us.”
Those rallying demanded school leaders disclose the university’s police budget — and then cut it in half. The student group additionally wants the university to disband its police force by 2022 and to redistribute the remaining funding to support students of color and ethnic studies.
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University of Chicago police officers watch as activists gather to hear speakers before the activists marched to demand the defunding of the university's police force. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
People write down emergency phone numbers on one another's forearms before marching to demand the defunding of the University of Chicago Police Department. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
When asked for comment, a university spokesman referred to an Aug. 12 message from President Robert Zimmer and Provost Ka Yee Lee, who said they believe it’s necessary to examine public safety and how policing can be improved.
The message also said, “The University of Chicago Police Department (UCPD) provides a vital service in helping to keep safe and support our campus and surrounding communities — a mission that the University has undertaken with the encouragement of community leaders and in accordance with Chicago City Ordinance. That role will continue.”
Members of student groups UChicago United and Care Not Cops as well as the activist organizations Black Lives Matter Chicago and Good Kids Mad City were at the protest.
“I’m angry because the University of Chicago, you know, the one that loves buzzwords like diversity and inclusion, that puts Black kids on their postcards, is the same university that owns and operates one of the largest private police forces in the country,” Wright said.
The crowd shouted back, “That ain’t right.”
Chioma Nwoye agreed that the university has not lived up to its promises to confront racism.
Activists block off vehicle traffic during a rally to demand the defunding of the University of Chicago Police Department. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
“As a Black student, I would say UCPD doesn’t make me feel safe at all,” Nwoye said. “What makes me feel safe is my sense of community that I’ve built here with other students of color, with other organizers.”
Speakers pointed to the 2018 shooting of fourth-year student Charles Thomas as an example of school police failing to protect the community. Thomas was in the midst of a mental health crisis in the 5300 block of South Kimbark Avenue when a university officer fired a shot and wounded his shoulder as Thomas advanced with a stake in his hand, officials have said.
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Alicia Hurtado, another student organizer, said university police also racially profiled Black students and neighbors and upheld what she said was the university’s history of gentrifying Hyde Park and surrounding neighborhoods.
“While some may say we need the University of Chicago Police Department to keep us safe … they’re not,” Hurtado said. “Safety shouldn’t come at the expense of another person and of another group. And we’re here as students to demand of our university to do the right thing.”
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 1,992 new known COVID-19 cases and 11 additional fatalities reporte

Coronavirus in Illinois updates: 1,992 new known COVID-19 cases and 11 additional fatalities reported on Sunday

The state passed 8,000 fatalities for the first time on Saturday .
However , the official COVID-19 death toll in @ @ @ @ @ at least 1,000 fatalities — and potentially far more — that could be attributable to @ @ @ @ @ a Tribune analysis of federal data .

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois public health officials Sunday announced 1,992 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths. Overall, Illinois has reported 233,355 known cases, including 8,019 confirmed deaths.
The state passed 8,000 fatalities for the first time on Saturday. However, the official COVID-19 death toll in Illinois may not account for at least 1,000 fatalities — and potentially far more — that could be attributable to the pandemic, according to a Tribune analysis of federal data.
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Additionally, Cook County is among the 30 counties the IDPH sounded the alarm about Friday for a resurgence in coronavirus cases.
That’s the largest number of counties that had reached “warning level” since the agency began issuing those weekly reports earlier this summer, and the first time Cook County has been on it. The warning level applies to suburban Cook County and does not apply to the city of Chicago.
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Here’s what’s happening this weekend with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
Sunday
Inspired by a student’s hug, principal on Chicago’s South Side pens children’s book about returning to school during COVID-19
One of Vanessa Williams Johnson’s students tried to hug her while picking up a homework packet in April. The innocent gesture, innocuous any other year, made the South Side principal realize educators would be fighting an uphill battle in helping their students cope with the new realities of the pandemic.
“When he saw me, he broke out into a run towards me,” Williams Johnson said. “It was like an avalanche coming, like ‘Wait, wait, wait, we’re not touching, we’re not hugging.’ The mom couldn’t stop him. He just wanted to come and get a hug from his principal.”
“I realized at the time that we’re really going to have to do something when it comes time for our students to come back to school after being away from us so long,” Williams Johnson said.
For Williams Johnson, one of those things turned out to be writing a children’s book for the first time. On top of transitioning W.E.B. Du Bois Elementary School to remote learning last spring, Williams Johnson wrote “No Hugs, No Bugs,” a picture book that tells the story of a group of puppies on their first day back to school during COVID-19.
Read more here. —Claire Hao
Saturday
1,880 new known COVID-19 cases, 11 additional deaths
The state Department of Public Health announced 1,880 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 11 deaths. Overall, Illinois has reported 231,363 cases, including 8,008 deaths.
“Today is a solemn day in Illinois as we’ve now lost 8,000 lives to COVID-19,” said Gov. J.B. Pritzker said in a news release. “As we mourn the family, friends and neighbors who have been taken too soon, let’s do our part to prevent more senseless tragedy. Wear a mask. Watch your distance. Wash your hands. Every action counts.”
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—Chicago Tribune staff
Chicago’s Tamale Guy, Claudio Velez, hospitalized with COVID-19 and placed on ventilator
Claudio Velez, known widely as the beloved Tamale Guy in Chicago, has been hospitalized and tested positive for the coronavirus, according to social media posts and confirmed by his partners at their newly opened restaurant, Tamale Guy Chicago, on Saturday.
Read more here. —Louisa Chu
Friday
Northwestern University announces it won’t have freshmen and sophomores on campus and will close fraternity and sorority houses because of COVID-19
Northwestern University announced late Friday that it will not have freshmen and sophomore students back on campus for the fall term or in residencies, and will keep sorority and fraternity houses closed.
It’s a sharp departure from plans reiterated just earlier this week by Northwestern officials who spoke during a community town hall meeting reiterated their during a community town hall meeting. They said then that the campus would open but with a reduced residence hall capacity and many employees still working from home.
Read more here. —Elyssa Cherney


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Inspired by a student’s hug, principal on Chicago’s South Side pens children’s book about returning

Inspired by a student’s hug, principal on Chicago’s South Side pens children’s book about returning to school during COVID-19

For others with the means to do so , Williams Johnson said she ’ s “ hoping even through COVID @ @ @ @ @ to try something different or do something new , this is absolutely the time to @ @ @ @ @ t let this opportunity pass you by .
”

Vanessa Williams Johnson, principal of W.E.B. Du Bois Elementary School in Chicago, at her home office in Tinley Park. She wrote a children's book, "No Hugs, No Bugs," about going back to school during the coronavirus pandemic. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
One of Vanessa Williams Johnson’s students tried to hug her while picking up a homework packet in April. The innocent gesture, innocuous any other year, made the South Side principal realize educators would be fighting an uphill battle in helping their students cope with the new realities of the pandemic.
“When he saw me, he broke out into a run towards me,” Williams Johnson said. “It was like an avalanche coming, like ‘Wait, wait, wait, we’re not touching, we’re not hugging.’ The mom couldn’t stop him. He just wanted to come and get a hug from his principal.”
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“I realized at the time that we’re really going to have to do something when it comes time for our students to come back to school after being away from us so long,” Williams Johnson said.
For Williams Johnson, one of those things turned out to be writing a children’s book for the first time. On top of transitioning W.E.B. Du Bois Elementary School to remote learning last spring, Williams Johnson wrote “No Hugs, No Bugs,” a picture book that tells the story of a group of puppies on their first day back to school during COVID-19.
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Vanessa Williams Johnson, principal of W.E.B. Du Bois Elementary School, holds the children's book she wrote about the pandemic, titled "No Hugs, No Bugs." (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
The book launched Aug. 1 through Amazon Publishing and has sold 300 copies so far, Williams Johnson said. Illustrated by her niece, Aliyah Johnson, it depicts the puppies following public health guidelines such as getting their temperatures checked, washing their hands and social distancing on the carpet during story time.
Aliyah Johnson, a student at Virginia Union University, aspires to be a professional illustrator. She said the book was her biggest project so far, with each page taking her 30 minutes to an hour to draw.
It was her idea to use animals to help kids understand the pandemic in a fun, interactive way.
“Kids relate to animals, and they’re universal. There’s no discrimination between animals,” she said.
When she wrote the book in April, Williams Johnson thought Chicago Public Schools would open this fall. She envisioned that educators could read the book to young students on the first day of school.
“It’s usually a really big deal, because every primary teacher is preparing and planning for their first day of school read-aloud to their students,” Williams Johnson said. “It’s the story that either ties into the themes of the year or sets up the expectations for the community.”
But with the coronavirus situation worsening in Illinois and around the country, Williams Johnson said safety must come first. Still, she hopes parents will find the book useful “to help their children go out into the world and feel OK.”
As an educator devoted to social-emotional learning, Williams Johnson said helping her students feel OK has been her mission throughout the pandemic. She worked with teachers to re-envision their curriculum, particularly for younger children who are used to sharing, group activities and cooperative learning.
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Du Bois Elementary handed out technology and helped set up internet access for families, many of whom were not used to having devices at home. Because her school is located in a food desert, Williams Johnson also spearheaded food distribution through her school for families struggling with food insecurity.
She even resolved conflicts between students on the playground, because “having the school’s playground as a place of relief for students? That’s it. That’s all they have.”
Then, there was the student whose situation broke her heart. One eighth grader logged onto school every day, only for his teachers to learn later that he had been home alone because his mom was in the hospital with COVID-19.
“To know that a kid wanted to make sure he graduated, so he pushed his feelings aside to make sure he stayed on track while his mom was intubated for about three weeks?” Williams Johnson said. “That was unreal to me.”
And the “gravity of knowing you’re in a position to have to protect” students also took a toll on her.
“It was like the train never stopped. It was overload,” Williams Johnson said. “But you’re mentally having to pull yourself out of it because you’re the person who’s going to help them. That was a mental heaviness, so I really had to make a decision on where I could be of service.”
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Vanessa Williams Johnson wrote the book "No Hugs, No Bugs" in April, when she thought CPS would resume in-person learning in September. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Williams Johnson said she thought of front-line workers for inspiration: “I can take care of my role with the school. I don’t know if I can do what the doctors did, or the nurses did, but I can do that.”
She said this service-oriented mindset was how she made the mental space to write her book. She would work on the book at night, which became a way for her to “spiritually center” herself.
“You almost felt defeated, because there was so much uncertainty. But as educators, that’s what we do. In the face of challenges, we rise,” Williams Johnson said.
Now that the book is published, Williams Johnson said readers from across the country and Canada have reached out. “Some have said, ‘Will there be more adventures for Wag-a-Doodle Elementary School?’ I don’t know, I had not thought that far,” she said with a laugh.
Like many of the projects she’s had to oversee, Williams Johnson “didn’t even go into 2020 thinking about publishing a book.” But with this endeavor, she said she’s “finally doing something that is me.”
“Before I started this, before COVID, I had no time for myself when it comes to my creative side,” she said.
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For others with the means to do so, Williams Johnson said she’s “hoping even through COVID … if you had plans to try something different or do something new, this is absolutely the time to do it. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.”
chao@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--7-year-old girl attending birthday party killed in drive-by shooting in South Bend, police say

Although several people were standing in front of the home , she was the only shooting victim , according to @ @

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Shots fired from a vehicle killed a 7-year-old girl attending a birthday party in northern Indiana, according to police.
The shooting occurred Saturday around 7:40 p.m. when multiple shots were fired from a vehicle driving by the home in South Bend.
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The girl was seriously injured and later died at an area hospital, police said.
Although several people were standing in front of the home, she was the only shooting victim, according to authorities.
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An autopsy has not yet been scheduled.
The St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit has taken over the investigation.


chicagotribune--2020-08-30--Trump to visit Kenosha on Tuesday to meet with police amid protests over shooting of Jacob Blake

Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey and two other officers were responding to a domestic dispute call last Sunday when Sheskey @ @ @ @ @ seven times .
Cellphone video captured the shooting , which has sparked new protests against @ @ @ @ @ months after George Floyd ’ s death at the hands of a Minneapolis officer touched @ @ @ @ @ race .

Madison Taft and Black Lives Matter activists march through a Kenosha neighborhood Jan. 5, 2021, after news that no charges will be issued against the Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Tuesday, amid fury over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in the back, which left the 29-year-old Black man paralyzed.
White House spokesman Judd Deere told reporters aboard Air Force One on Saturday that Trump will be meeting with law enforcement officers and “surveying” some of the damage from recent protests that turned destructive.
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The visit is certain to exacerbate tensions in the city, where a crowd of about 1,000 demonstrators gathered outside a courthouse Saturday to denounce police violence.
Trump has been running his reelection campaign on a law-and-order mantle, denouncing protesters as “thugs” while voicing his support for police.
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President Donald Trump gives thumbs up while walking to Air Force One upon departure at Chennault International Airport on Aug. 29, 2020, in Lake Charles, La. (Alex Brandon/AP)
In his acceptance speech during the virtual Republican National Convention, Trump painted the election in hyperbolic terms as a stark choice between peaceful streets and anarchy.
Trump’s opponent for reelection, former Vice President Joe Biden, and his running mate, Kamala Harris, have accused Trump of rooting for violence amid unrest in Wisconsin.
“He views this as a political benefit,” Biden said in an interview on MSNBC. “He’s rooting for more violence, not less. And it’s clear about that.”
Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey and two other officers were responding to a domestic dispute call last Sunday when Sheskey shot Blake in the back seven times. Cellphone video captured the shooting, which has sparked new protests against racial injustice and police brutality months after George Floyd’s death at the hands of a Minneapolis officer touched off a wider reckoning on race.


chicagotribune--2020-08-31--St. Louis police officer dies a day after being shot in the head

A photo of a note police said came from Bohannon ’ s family was posted on the department ’ s @ @ @ @ @ of his death .
“ He is a hero to many , but most importantly @ @ @ @ @ three incredible children , ” read the note that referred to Bohannon as “ Bo @ @ @ @ @ prayers and support in the days ahead .
”

St. Louis police officers line up and salute as the body of fallen Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon is brought to the morgue in St. Louis on Aug. 30, 2020. (David Carson / St. Louis Post-Dispatch/AP)
ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis police officer who was a “hero” to his family died Sunday after being shot in the head by a barricaded gunman on the city’s south side, authorities said.
Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon, 29, had been with the department for 3 1/2 years.
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A second officer who was shot in the leg was treated and released after the shooting around 6 p.m. Saturday in the South Grand neighborhood near Tower Grove Park, St. Louis Police Department spokeswoman Officer Michelle Woodling said.
Woodling said the second officer is 30 and has been on the force about six months. The 43-year-old suspect was taken into custody Sunday morning, Woodling said.
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Mayor Lyda Krewson said in a statement Sunday night that she was “heartbroken” at Bohannon’s death. “I’ve had the privilege of spending some time with his family under these extraordinarily challenging circumstances. They’re wonderful people and immensely proud of the way he selflessly served and protected our community with distinction and honor for more than three years.”
“This is a horrific reminder of the dangers our brave men and women willingly face everyday to keep us safe ... This is a terrible, senseless tragedy.”
A photo of a note police said came from Bohannon’s family was posted on the department’s Twitter page after the announcement of his death. “He is a hero to many, but most importantly to his loving wife and three incredible children,” read the note that referred to Bohannon as “Bo” and asked for “prayers and support in the days ahead.”
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Chief John Hayden said the gunman ordered a family out of their home at gunpoint and barricaded himself inside for almost 12 hours.
Officers were searching for another reported shooting victim when the gunman shot Bohannon in the head and the other officer in the leg, Hayden said.
The officers were “trying to do their job, that’s all they’re trying to do and they’re suffering under gunfire,” Hayden said, adding that the incidents are part of “a surge in violence” this summer. He asked residents to pray for the officers.
Hayden said eight of his officers have been shot in the line of duty since June 1.
“We’re trying to cope through a very trying summer, and it’s very difficult. It’s very difficult,” he said.
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While the man was barricaded inside, officers armed with rifles and a SWAT team assembled outside. Police closed surrounding streets and warned residents to stay inside. Police used a bullhorn to order the suspect out and fired tear gas into the house, but fired no gunshots, the department said.
The man was taken into custody around 5:30 a.m. Police have released no details about how the standoff came to an end.
Homeowners Mimi and Steve Haag said they were trying to call 911 to help another man who had been shot when the gunman just walked into their home.
“I saw then he had a gun,” Steve Haag told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “He was very calm standing there with it in his hand and he just says to Mimi: ‘Ma’am you need to get off the phone.’”
The Haags escaped through the back door and were unhurt in their encounter with the gunman. Police were unable to locate the other man who was apparently shot and wounded.
Krewson tweeted her condolences following the incident.
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“Please keep our injured officers and all the men and women of @SLMPD in your thoughts and prayers as this situation continues to develop. Their friends, family and loved ones, too,” Krewson said.
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who has a fractious relationship with the city’s police, also issued a statement of support.
“We extend our deepest concern and sadness surrounding today’s unfortunate events,” Gardner told KDSK-TV. “I want to extend my prayers for the injured SLMPD officers and their families.”


chicagotribune--2020-08-31--Daywatch: Five shot in Morgan Park, worries about new health care plan for foster children and the p

Daywatch: Five shot in Morgan Park, worries about new health care plan for foster children and the pandemic spurs babysitter bidding wars

Many of the children and teens require specialized services because of their medical conditions or trauma they have experienced .
@ @ @ @ @ launch is poorly timed given the coronavirus pandemic and the stresses that crisis has put @ @ @ @ @ care industry and the government .

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Good morning, Chicago. Over the weekend, Illinois surpassed 8,000 reported deaths from the coronavirus.
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However, a Tribune analysis of federal data found that the number fatalities tied to COVID-19 is likely much higher than the official toll— by at least 1,000 deaths, if not more.
On a different note, as parents, students and educators face the new school year, one principal on the South Side wrote a book about returning to school during COVID-19.
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Here’s more coronavirus news and other top stories you need to know to start your day.
Chicago police officers work at the scene where six people were shot, one fatally, at Lumes Pancake House in the 11600 block of South Western Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, in Chicago's Morgan Park neighborhood. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Five people were shot, one fatally, Sunday afternoon outside a restaurant in Morgan Park on Chicago’s Far Southwest Side, authorities said.
Dozens of people watched the scene at Lumes Pancake House as sunlight beamed across Western Avenue. Lumes cook Martin Puente said dozens of shots were fired, setting off panic.
Chicago police respond to 10 shootings in about 3 hours Sunday, including 3 homicides and an attack that left 2 officers seriously wounded
Melodie and Brett Beaver and their seven kids, ages 16 years to toddler, play in a park by their home in Kendall County on Aug, 25, 2020. Five are their biological children, one is adopted and one is a foster child. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
The state is set to roll out a new managed health care plan for thousands of foster children on Tuesday amid concerns from some caregivers and child welfare advocates who question whether the for-profit company that runs the plan has built a provider network that is adequate to handle the population’s unique needs.
Many of the children and teens require specialized services because of their medical conditions or trauma they have experienced. Parents and advocates argue the launch is poorly timed given the coronavirus pandemic and the stresses that crisis has put on families, the health care industry and the government.
Jacob Blake's father, Jacob Blake Sr., talks to a crowd at a rally Aug. 29, 2020, in Kenosha (Morry Gash/AP)
Nearly one week after a Kenosha police officer shot Jacob Blake Jr. seven times in the back, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down, thousands of people joined Blake’s family to march through the streets of Kenosha on Saturday afternoon, calling for racial equality.
A fiery and sometimes emotional Jacob Blake Sr. began speaking to the crowd, recounting what his son asked him when he visited him in the hospital.
‘We will unite to fight’: Evanston residents, leaders grieve, pray and demand change following the shooting of Jacob Blake
Midwife Karie Stewart, left, visits Stephanie Ivey and her 1-month-old daughter, Maliani, at her home in Chicago on Aug. 27, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Birthing centers, freestanding locations that offer prenatal care and low-risk deliveries, are considered safe and low-cost alternatives to hospitals. But despite a 2007 law allowing them, Chicago has none. On the South Side, Black midwives want to change that. After watching labor wards close and their patients’ options dwindle, they are determined to open a birthing center.
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Hannah Roberts adjusts her baby stroller outside her home Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020, in Chicago. Roberts and her husband have an 8-month-old son, who is cared for by a nanny when they are at work. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune) (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
With day care centers closing due to COVID-19, and parents seeking e-learning assistance for their children, nannies and sitters are in high demand, and now there are indications that pay is on the rise. Qualified sitters are getting minimum starting pay of about $18 an hour, up from $16 before COVID-19, according to Tori Ulrich, president of the child care search firm Chicago Super Sitters.


chicagotribune--2020-08-31--Anxious foster parents say it’s not the right time to switch fragile kids into new managed care plan

The state has paid the company $ 1.4 million a month since November for the program , which as of @ @ @ @ @ of former foster children — those who have been adopted , are in a subsidized @ @ @ @ @ least 18 and still get DCFS services .
Rates have not been finalized for this @ @ @ @ @ officials estimate the monthly total cost will be about $ 12 million to $ 15 @ @ @ @ @

Melodie and Brett Beaver and their seven kids, ages 16 years to toddler, play in a park by their home in Kendall County on Aug, 25, 2020. Five are their biological children, one is adopted and one is a foster child. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Nearly five years ago, Melodie and Brett Beaver became foster parents to a boy with complex medical problems caused by a traumatic brain injury as an infant.
The child sees more than a half-dozen doctors and specialists on a team the Kendall County couple painstakingly built to ensure their foster son gets the best care possible.
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But the foster parents fear most of those medical professionals may no longer be available to the boy because of a big change in the way Illinois provides Medicaid coverage to its most vulnerable children.
The state is set to roll out a new managed health care plan for thousands of foster children on Tuesday amid concerns from some caregivers and child welfare advocates who question whether the for-profit company that runs the plan has built a provider network that is adequate to handle the population’s unique needs.
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Many of the children and teens require specialized services because of their medical conditions or trauma they have experienced. Parents and advocates calling for a delay argue the launch is poorly timed given the coronavirus pandemic and the stresses that crisis has put on families, the health care industry and the government.
Nearly 18,000 foster youths within the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services will be affected by the change. The state had delayed earlier launches of the program, called YouthCare.
Casting aside calls to pump the brakes one more time, officials with DCFS and the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services say the managed-care program is a major improvement over the current fee-for-service model in which foster parents search for providers and services willing to accept Medicaid in a complicated system that leaves them to fend for themselves.
The new managed-care program has a network of about 50,000 providers, which is more than three times the number of health care professionals currently serving the foster care population, according to a state analysis of 2019 claims data.
Families have a six-month grace period to continue seeing a provider who is not part of YouthCare as program officials work to bring the medical professional into the fold or find a new provider. In the toughest cases, the DCFS guardianship administrator may allow the family to join one of the state’s alternate managed-care plans, state officials said.
Healthcare and Family Services Director Theresa Eagleson said there is no reason to delay further. She noted that 200 care coordinators will work with foster parents to answer questions and ensure there is no disruption in their child’s health care. DCFS also has an appeals process through its advocacy office.
“We only see positives in moving forward,” Eagleson said. “I don’t think any of us, when we really think about it, is happy with the status quo. We are ready and (are) only delaying care if we don’t move forward.”
But Cook County Public Guardian Charles Golbert said the new network is not as robust as the state contends. In recent “secret shopper” exercises, Golbert said his attorneys called nearly 300 providers listed on the program’s website and found that very few accepted YouthCare patients.
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Incredibly, he said, some medical professionals listed in the database said they had never heard of YouthCare.
Golbert has asked Gov. J.B. Pritzker to wait on the transition. Golbert said his office has heard from scores of confused and anxious foster parents, many of whom said their child’s doctor is not part of the network and who complained about a lack of communication.
Melodie Beaver and her family's foster child play in a park by their home in Kendall County on Aug, 25, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Melodie Beaver said her foster son has cerebral palsy and other complex medical diagnoses but has made great strides with his doctors and therapists, some of whom have worked with the child for years. She and other foster parents of children with specialized medical needs hope to be exempt from the new program.
“YouthCare told me that they are going to try to see if the providers will take (the plan), but there’s no guarantee,” the foster mother said, “and I’m not holding my breath.”
A statewide shift
The state-mandated transition is part of a larger effort by Illinois to shift all recipients of Medicaid — a state- and federally funded health insurance program for the poor — into a managed-care organization.
Following a national trend, Illinois passed a law nearly a decade ago requiring at least 50% of people receiving Medicaid benefits to move into managed care by 2015. Former Gov. Bruce Rauner renewed that effort, contending it would save the cash-strapped state on administrative costs while providing better care.
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As of this summer, nearly 2.2 million people — about 75% of all recipients — had made the transition, according to Healthcare and Family Services, which oversees Medicaid in Illinois.
The agency has experience moving vulnerable groups into managed care, having transitioned seniors and adults with disabilities years ago. But the foster population is particularly complex.
Children and teens in foster care often move between families or group homes, changing doctors and creating problems with fragmented medical records. The population also covers ages from newborns to young adults, requiring a wide network of providers.
And, according to experts, traumatized children and teens are at a higher risk of mental and physical health problems. That is an especially crucial issue in Illinois, which is ranked one of the worst states in the country for the length of time foster children remain in the system before finding a permanent home.
Advocates such as Golbert and the American Civil Liberties Union, which monitors DCFS under a decadesold federal consent decree, say they are not opposed to managed care. But they argue it will succeed only if rolled out properly and with the goal of improving children’s health care — not saving money.
The ACLU objected to an earlier planned launch. Then, in January, after the state presented the results of an independent analysis from a nationally recognized vendor showing Illinois was on track to meet key network requirements, an agreement was reached for an April 1 rollout. The state, though, chose to delay until Sept. 1 because of the pandemic.
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Golbert argues YouthCare still is not ready. His staff’s “secret shopper” exercises resulted in 65% to 90% failure rates, he said. “This is beyond unacceptable,” Golbert said. “This is currently the most important issue in child welfare in Illinois. We must get this right.”
Under managed care, states such as Illinois pay a for-profit company to administer benefits. The company is charged with building a network of providers from scratch and directly reimbursing them rather than the state paying the bills under a fee-for-service model. No doctor is required to join.
Critics of managed care worry about putting state and federal dollars meant for patient care into the hands of for-profit companies who may skimp on services to boost profits. Proponents say private companies can run Medicaid programs more efficiently.
YouthCare is operated by MeridianHealth, which was recently bought by the health giant Centene.
State officials said they will closely monitor the plan and measure YouthCare’s performance in several areas, including the size and scope of the network, how quickly it pays providers and whether it spends at least 85% of the payments it receives to provide care and improve quality, a federal requirement.
The state has paid the company $1.4 million a month since November for the program, which as of Feb. 1 began serving thousands of former foster children — those who have been adopted, are in a subsidized guardianship, or are at least 18 and still get DCFS services. Rates have not been finalized for this next phase, but state officials estimate the monthly total cost will be about $12 million to $15 million after Sept. 1.
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Eagleson, the HFS director, said that as a parent she understands how frustrating the health care system can be to navigate. She said YouthCare hired 200 care coordinators to manage children’s health care, research providers, schedule appointments and arrange transportation if needed.
As for Golbert’s “secret shopper” exercise, the director questioned his methodology but acknowledged that efforts to educate providers about the program are ongoing. The state said YouthCare’s network of providers represents more than 90% of the Medicaid dollars spent on foster children last year. And, recently, Northwestern Medicine joined the network, she said.
“Ultimately, this is about better care and better access to health care for families,” Eagleson said. “We believe health care is a right, not a privilege, and we are trying to center this around our customers, which are these (18,000 foster kids). We think this brings a lot in access and help to those families.”
A ’really good program’?
Amanda and Daniel Holbrook live in Metropolis, a small city by the Kentucky border. The couple has seven children — five who are adopted and two in foster care, including one with cerebral palsy. Three of the children have been in YouthCare since February, when the state rolled out managed care to former foster children and young adults.
The foster mother said she was initially concerned about proximity to providers, a problem more acute in downstate Illinois, and potential increases in her out-of-pocket costs. Seven months later, Holbrook said nothing has changed for the worse and she appreciates the increased support she gets from her care coordinator.
“I understand why people are upset. I was confused about what was going to happen, but once you get in the program, it’s a really good program,” Holbrook said. “They’re very helpful.”
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Another parent, Amber Bell, who also lives in southern Illinois, has had three adopted children in YouthCare since February. One of them, a boy who was diagnosed with brain cancer several years ago, has a team of nearly two dozen doctors, she said.
Bell said the young teen had surgery in June to remove a benign mass. He also relies on a prescription that is manufactured in Italy, a country hit particularly hard by the pandemic. Bell said her care coordinator helped fill his prescription when his medication was low.
“It was great to have that kind of reassurance and know I have someone in my corner,” she said. Both Holbrook and Bell said they did not lose providers and did not incur more out-of-pocket medical bills.
But some foster parents who are part of the Sept. 1 rollout remain anxious.
Tina Campbell, who lives in Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood, said her 3-year-old foster son’s pediatrician is not in the new network and there are only four feeding/nutrition specialists in the area, with one being more than 100 miles away.
“Nobody is excited about this. Everyone is frustrated,” said Campbell, who helps run a foster parent support group with 5,000 members on Facebook. “It’s caused us all so much stress, and during a pandemic when we’re going back to school ... to throw this at us, I think, is like throwing us under the bus.”
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Julianne Neely is a single foster parent raising two young children in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood. Neely said she's been unable to determine whether her foster children's pediatrician is participating in the new YouthCare program. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
Another foster mother, Julianne Neely, said that after a lot of phone calls, she is still not certain whether her two foster children’s pediatrician is in YouthCare. Her son’s asthma specialist is not, she said. A single parent, Neely said the children may lose providers with intimate knowledge of their complex needs.
“These are the most vulnerable children and, to me, they need and deserve the highest level of care,” said Neely, of Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood.
Grace Brown, a pediatric nurse from Lake County, and her husband, Justin, moved their adopted son to their private health insurance instead of using YouthCare. Though they have more out-of-pocket costs, she said, the move allowed the boy to stay with his pediatrician and therapist.
In addition to their adopted son and two biological children, the Browns have four foster children who require specialized medical care, including two who have respiratory issues and use oxygen at home.
Anticipating similar problems with Tuesday’s launch for the four foster children, Brown said she’s spent hours on the phone and sending emails with the hope of getting them into an alternate network. She said their pediatrician is not in YouthCare and will not honor the six-month grace period.
“With every phone call and every email reply, things just seem more convoluted,” Brown said. “They’re not approving exceptions in a timely manner and, actually, I haven’t heard of anyone successfully being granted the exception.”
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‘A miracle’
ACLU attorney Heidi Dalenberg, lead counsel in the federal consent decree case, said DCFS foster children are guaranteed medical care and none should be rejected by a network provider with an open practice. While no one expects perfection, she said, children’s fundamental health care entitlements must be honored and “we’ll be watching and holding (the state) and YouthCare accountable.”
A Pritzker spokeswoman did not respond to a Tribune request for comment.
Three of Melodie and Brett Beaver's seven kids walk in a park as the family plays near their Kendall County home on Aug. 25, 2020. Five of the kids are the couple's biological children, one is adopted and one is a foster child. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
For the Beavers, who met in college, becoming foster parents was always part of their plan. Brett Beaver was adopted, his wife said, and the couple knew they wanted to help needy children and families. Besides cerebral palsy, their foster son has a history of post-traumatic seizures, visual impairment and other health problems.
He was not expected to walk or talk or develop cognitively beyond the abilities of an 18-month-old. But Melodie Beaver said he is “a miracle,” defying doctors’ expectations by walking and running with the help of braces and a cane. He has limited speech and uses a communication device to better express himself.
He loves playing with his toy cars, trains and tractors, and splashing outside in water. The boy is learning to say “I love you,” Beaver said, but already he expresses himself with hugs, smiles and sounds that let his foster parents and six siblings know they are his, and he is theirs.
Beaver said she does not know what will happen after Sept. 1. But the foster mother, echoing others, said she will never stop fighting for the boy.
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Foster parents seeking assistance may call YouthCare at 844-289-2264 or the DCFS advocacy office at 800-232-3798 or send an email to DCFS.HealthPlan@Illinois.gov. The ACLU also is seeking to hear from foster parents who could not resolve difficulties with YouthCare or DCFS at 312-854-9805 or via email at DCFS-MCO@aclu-il.org.
cmgutowski@chicagotribune.com