chicagotribune--2020-04-23--With 12 new COVID-19 deaths, long-term care facilities in DuPage now account for 83 of county’s over

With 12 new COVID-19 deaths, long-term care facilities in DuPage now account for 83 of county’s overall total of 118

The latest victims were not identified but were all in their 60s through their 90s , and all had underlying @ @ @ @ @ facilities , which were not identified by name , were in Bloomingdale , Burr Ridge @ @ @ @ @ ( 3 ) , Elmhurst ( 3 ) , Hinsdale , Lombard and Naperville .

Twelve more people with the coronavirus in DuPage County have died, all of them coming from long-term care facilities such as nursing homes, officials said Thursday.
That makes 83 deaths attributed to long-term care facilities, out of 118 overall in the county. That includes 10 at Chateau Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Willowbrook, as well as deaths at 34 other such businesses.
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Long-term care facilities account for nearly one-quarter of all COVID-19 deaths in Illinois. Nursing home residents are at high risk for severe complications from the disease because of their age and frequent underlying medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart and lung problems, and obesity.
The newest report follows a report Wednesday, which included seven victims, all from long-term care facilities, and Tuesday, when there were six deaths, all from the same type of facilities.
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There were 124 new coronavirus cases in DuPage Thursday, the county health department reported, bringing the total number of cases to 2,075.
The latest victims were not identified but were all in their 60s through their 90s, and all had underlying medical conditions. The care facilities, which were not identified by name, were in Bloomingdale, Burr Ridge (2), Westmont (3), Elmhurst (3), Hinsdale, Lombard and Naperville.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order will remain in place through May 30. But changes are coming.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order will remain in place through May 30. But changes are coming. Here’s what you need to know.

People who are homeless are exempt from the order but are “ strongly urged to obtain shelter , ” and @ @ @ @ @ to make shelter available “ as soon as possible and to the maximum extent practicable.
@ @ @ @ @ he would direct “ additional resources to organizations across the state to serve those experiencing @ @

Jamie Munks, Antonia Ayres-Brown, Dan Petrella

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)
Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced he will extend his statewide stay-at-home order, previously set to expire April 30, through May 29, while at the same time easing some of the restrictions he credits with helping slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
Here’s what’s new starting May 1:
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Face coverings required
Most people older than 2 will be required to wear a face covering in public anytime they can’t maintain 6 feet of distance from others, including at indoor places such as stores.
Businesses will have to require that all employees and customers wear face coverings, and “essential” businesses must provide them to all employees who can’t maintain proper social distance.
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Decisions about how to enforce the face-covering requirement will be left to local authorities, Pritzker said. “We’re not police officers to stop people and to arrest them or take drastic action,” he said.
“People should wear a mask and they should be reminded if they’re not wearing a mask that they’re not, and private establishments do need to require that people who enter their establishment wear a mask,” Pritzker said.
[ Illinois wants all shoppers to wear masks at the grocery store. Enforcing that rule is trickier. ]
New outdoor options
Some state parks, all of which closed five days before the statewide stay-at-home order took effect on March 21, will reopen May 1.
A list of parks that will be open will be available on the Illinois Department of Natural Resources website. Fishing and boating will be allowed in groups of no more than two people, but hunting remains suspended.
Parks will be open sunrise to sunset, but all visitor centers, campgrounds, playgrounds, beaches and concessions will remain closed. The most popular state park, Starved Rock, is among those that will remain closed.
Golf courses will be allowed to reopen with social distancing guidelines in place.
[ At least 20 Chicago suburbs require face coverings in public — something most people in Illinois will have to do beginning May 1 ]
New essential businesses
The extension Pritzker said he will sign next week will add greenhouses, garden centers, nurseries and pet groomers to the list of essential businesses beginning in May.
Essential businesses, which also include grocery stores, pharmacies, gas stations, laundromats, banks, marijuana dispensaries and gun shops, will be required to follow new guidelines such as limiting the number of people in a store at any given time and staggering workers’ shifts.
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Some elective and nonemergency medical procedures also will be allowed to resume, Pritzker said Thursday.
Jamie Jones, left, and Kimberly Galban pick up grocery donations for their out-of-work restaurant employees at Hogsalt outside of Frontera Grill on April 23, 2020, in Chicago. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
Opening ‘nonessential’ retailers
Retailers that aren’t classified as essential businesses will be permitted to reopen to take telephone and online orders for outside pickup and delivery.
[ From closing schools to stay-at-home order, here's how Illinois' coronavirus response compares with other states ]
What isn’t changing?
Other aspects of the order and the statewide shutdown will not change.
Pritzker announced last week that schools would continue remote learning for the rest of the academic year.
The governor closed schools beginning March 17 through March 30. The shutdown was extended twice to align with the stay-at-home order before Pritzker announced Friday that students would not return this school year.
Schools are allowed to establish procedures for students to pick up supplies and personal belongings, and college dormitories must follow social distancing protocols and other public health guidelines for students moving out.
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People can continue to leave their homes to get exercise outdoors and walk their pets. Local roads, including interstate highways and tollways, as well as public transit, will remain open and operating. Under the order, homes and residences include hotels and motels, shared rental units and shelters.
[ As the coronavirus spreads, the Tribune is tracking Illinois cases here ]
How will this affect homeless individuals in Illinois?
People who are homeless are exempt from the order but are “strongly urged to obtain shelter,” and government entities statewide are urged to make shelter available “as soon as possible and to the maximum extent practicable.” Pritzker said Friday that he would direct “additional resources to organizations across the state to serve those experiencing homelessness.
“For those who can’t stay at home because they may be homeless, we are providing, and attempting to provide, shelter for those people and doing our best to arrange that,” Pritzker said when the announced the original order. “Now, it’s vitally important that we try to find shelter for them.”
If someone’s home is unsafe because they are a victim of domestic violence, they are “permitted and urged” to leave their home and go to a safe alternative location.
dpetrella@chicagotribune.com
jmunks@chicagotribune.com
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aayres-brown@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--As Chicago pollen season ramps up, doctors give tips on telling COVID-19 from seasonal allergies

Figuring out when allergy season starts has gotten harder in recent years because of long cold spells in spring , @ @ @ @ @ overlap of different kinds of pollen that trigger allergies .
At the same time , @ @ @ @ @ be triggering allergies for people stuck in the house with pets .
But while allergies @ @ @ @ @ some of the same symptoms , experts say there are ways to tell which people @ @ @

Trees in River Park along the North Branch of the Chicago River on April 23. Tree pollen levels have yet to hit their high point this year. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
As captive Chicagoans focus on COVID-19, allergy sufferers have an added layer of worry: Pollen counts for both trees and grass have yet to peak in Illinois and they’re hoping their congestion and cough don’t mean something more serious.
Figuring out when allergy season starts has gotten harder in recent years because of long cold spells in spring, which have led to an overlap of different kinds of pollen that trigger allergies. At the same time, the Illinois stay-at-home order may be triggering allergies for people stuck in the house with pets. But while allergies and the novel coronavirus show some of the same symptoms, experts say there are ways to tell which people are experiencing.
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Were it a typical year, tree pollen most likely would peak in April in Illinois, as rates ramp up from March to May, said Dr. Rachna Shah, Loyola Medicine’s allergy expert who does pollen counts for the nonprofit Allergy and Asthma Center of Chicago. The second common allergen locally, grass pollen, is then expected to spike, usually lasting from May to the end of June. Ideally, the worst of each would be spread out over several months.
But Illinois hasn’t had many typical allergy seasons in the past five years or so, Shah said. It is hard to say whether this spring allergy season is abnormal because there isn’t a “normal” recent year to compare it with, but tree pollen levels have yet to hit their high point this year.
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“What we learned in the textbook is not what we have actually been experiencing in Chicago in spring,” Shah said. And the strange weather Chicago has had this April is affecting tree pollen levels and likely “prolonged tree season,” to the point that it could significantly overlap with the beginning of grass pollen season.
“The tree season has kind of extended because of these really cold spells that we’ve had,” Shah said.
“My prediction is that ... the first week of May may be really challenging.”
Those who have known allergies to either tree or grass pollen — they tend to trigger the similar symptoms, Shah said — can expect itchy eyes and nose, sneezing and a runny nose. Some can develop headaches, nasal congestion and postnasal drip.
In some cases, allergies also can lead to or exacerbate asthma, a disease that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says can put people at higher risk for more severe COVID-19.
Dr. Sharmilee Nyenhuis, an associate professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago with expertise in allergies and asthma, said there can be some overlap in the symptoms of allergies and the new coronavirus. But the ones that do overlap aren’t common for those suffering from the new coronavirus.
“Getting to the symptom overlap between allergies and COVID-19, some of the overlapping symptoms can be the runny nose and sometimes a sore throat and a dry cough,” she said. “Those could be either. Though, it’s much more common to have a runny nose with allergies in general whereas a runny nose in COVID-19 happens less than 10% of the time."
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“The biggest thing with COVID-19 is over 80% of people will have a fever, even with a mild case. And (in) patients with allergies, fever doesn’t happen, essentially. And usually, we’re not seeing the runny nose and sneezing and itchy, watery eyes. With the absence of fever, the probability of it being COVID-19 is low," Nyenhuis said.
Nyenhuis’ real concern with COVID-19 and allergies relates more to the effects of the state’s stay-at-home order. With people spending more time in their homes than usual, there is a greater chance they will experience symptoms or develop allergies to things such as pet dander, dust mites, or even pests such as mice or cockroaches, she said.
And people’s attempts to ward off the novel coronavirus can backfire and trigger allergies.
“Another trigger besides a change in weather is strong odors or chemicals, and people are using strong chemicals to clean more now because of COVID-19,” Nyenhuis said.
She said people should be aware of their environment and take precautions such as wearing a mask when cleaning with harsh chemicals. Those who are prescribed medicine for allergies or those who use over-the-counter remedies may want to ask for a 90-day supply of their medicine or plan to stock up on what they need so they’re leaving the house less often.
Mold also can trigger asthma and breathing issues and it’s important to check your home, especially with rain in the forecast, Nyenhuis said.
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Shah understands why people may be on edge if they’re experiencing symptoms during the pandemic. But without the common COVID-19 symptoms of fever and fatigue, people should try to determine whether they’re experiencing allergies.
“Everyone’s concerned. Every symptom we’re kind of analyzing,” Shah said. “But the itchy symptoms, the eyes, nose and throat, will not be present in COVID-19.”
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Two sides in federal lawsuit over conditions at Cook County Jail spar again over COVID-19 response a

Two sides in federal lawsuit over conditions at Cook County Jail spar again over COVID-19 response at the complex

And attorneys for the plaintiffs kept up their pressure calling for improvements Thursday .
They have continued to argue that @ @ @ @ @ to enforce social distancing , which in some settings — such as double-occupant cells and @ @ @ @ @ sleep together on cots — is simply impossible , and inmates are paying for it @ @ @ @

Ana McCullom and a coalition of activists from across the Chicago area protest in a caravan of vehicles to slow traffic outside the Cook County Jail calling for the mass release of incarcerated people in the state of Illinois to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 on April 7, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
The assistant director of Cook County Jail testified in federal court Thursday that more than 175 tiers in the sprawling facility have been transitioned to single-cell housing to help stem the rapid spread of coronavirus that so far has killed six inmates and a correctional officer.
In addition to putting more prisoners in cells by themselves, jail officials have stepped up social distancing measures by spray painting “X’s” on the floors to try to keep detainees 6 feet apart, said Mike Miller, executive director of the Cook County Department of Corrections.
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They’ve instructed inmates to spray down showers with disinfectant after use, handed out writing tablets and puzzle books to keep detainees occupied, and threatened those who violate social distancing protocols with loss of phone time or even the privilege of using the microwave, Miller testified via a video link in U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly’s courtroom.
His testimony came as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by the Loevy and Loevy law firm and the MacArthur Justice Center at Northwestern University alleging Sheriff Tom Dart has failed to stop a “rapidly unfolding public health disaster” at the jail, which has been identified as one of the nations’ leading hot spots for COVID-19 infections.
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And attorneys for the plaintiffs kept up their pressure calling for improvements Thursday. They have continued to argue that not enough is being done to enforce social distancing, which in some settings — such as double-occupant cells and dormitories where dozens of inmates sleep together on cots — is simply impossible, and inmates are paying for it with their health.
“The virus is spreading rapidly in the jail since the issuance of this court’s order,and that is not surprising: People are sleeping within 3 feet of each other, eating and using showers in close proximity to each other, and touching the same surfaces,” the plaintiffs wrote in an ongoing request for a preliminary injunction.
Earlier this month, Kennelly rejected an emergency request by plaintiffs in the suit to order the release of hundreds of medically vulnerable detainees due to the pandemic threat. Kennelly did, however, grant a temporary restraining order forcing Dart to comply with strict sanitation and testing measures.
Thursday’s hearing focused in large part on efforts to implement social distancing at the jail, a crucial measure to halt the disease’s spread.
“The sheriff’s decision not to enforce social distancing within Cook County Jail is objectively unreasonable,” attorney Sarah Grady argued for the plaintiffs. “They offer no details other than vague platitudes … they admit they are not enforcing social distancing in the common areas.”
The plaintiffs’ lawyers asked Kennelly on Thursday to order the sheriff’s office to implement a plan mandating 6 feet of social distance between each person at the jail, including in through-ways and common areas, except in cases of “extreme emergency.” Detainees should all be kept in single cells and dormitory-style housing should be closed, Grady argued.
Attorneys for the sheriff’s office asserted that such an order would go above and beyond the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations on handling COVID-19 in a custodial setting.
“When we found there were standards to follow, we started following them under the law," attorney Robert Shannon said. “Now the plaintiffs appear to say ‘you can comply with the CDC guidelines, but not that one, we want you to exceed that one.’ ”
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The judge said he will rule by Monday whether to issue such a preliminary injunction ordering the jail to implement a plan mandating social distancing. His temporary restraining order will remain in place until then, Kennelly said.
As of Wednesday, six detainees have died after contracting COVID-19 at the jail, according to the sheriff’s office. Another 231 inmates currently have the virus, 18 of whom are hospitalized. Hundreds of others have tested positive and have since recovered.
Also, 173 correctional officers who work at the jail are currently positive for COVID-19. One officer has died of the disease, the sheriff’s office said.
Officials with the Chicago Department of Public Health and the federal Centers for Disease Control toured the jail complex last week, Miller, the jail’s assistant director, testified. They were stunned by what they saw, he said — in a good way.
“One of them told me, ‘I can’t believe how well you guys are doing,’ ” Miller testified. “It was phenomenal.”
But an expert for the plaintiffs, Dr. Homer Venters, testified that the sheriff has failed to implement a cohesive plan to curtail COVID-19, fallen short in identifying high-risk detainees and only spottily enforced social distancing amid inmates and staff.
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Venters, who previously oversaw medical care in jails in New York, said it was particularly worrisome that guards at Cook County Jail continue to wear masks around their necks or on their head instead of covering their mouth and nose.
Dart has repeatedly defended his response and said he was “ahead of the curve” in recognizing the dangers the growing pandemic in a jail setting. To help alleviate overcrowding, Dart said he’s been working hard with stakeholders to release detainees who are medically vulnerable or accused of nonviolent offenses.
As of Thursday, the inmate population at Cook County Jail had dipped to just below 4,200 — its lowest mark in decades.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com
mcrepeau@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Suburban police chiefs, advocacy groups spar over proposal to support COVID-19 address-sharing to fi

Suburban police chiefs, advocacy groups spar over proposal to support COVID-19 address-sharing to first responders

“ Ensuring the safety of our health care workers , first responders , and law enforcement partners is of great @ @ @ @ @ the identity of people who test positive for the new coronavirus to prevent them from @ @ @ @ @ said in a statement , adding that he was calling for the minimum amount of @ @ @

The vote on a proposed resolution to support sharing addresses of known coronavirus patients with first responders was postponed during Thursday’s Cook County Board meeting to allow more time for analysis, following a public comment hearing that touched on privacy concerns.
Proposed by Commissioner Scott Britton, a Glenview Democrat, the resolution needs more analysis, he said.
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Britton’s resolution follows a McHenry County judge’s order to disclose names of coronavirus patients to 911 dispatchers. Health officials have opposed the practice, but are complying with the judge’s mandate.
Cook County Commissioner Scott Britton talks at a resident's open house in Glenview in February 2019. (Mark Ukena/for the Pioneer Press)
“Ensuring the safety of our health care workers, first responders, and law enforcement partners is of great importance, as is protecting the identity of people who test positive for the new coronavirus to prevent them from being stigmatized,” Britton said in a statement, adding that he was calling for the minimum amount of information needed.
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Ensuring the safety of first responders is of great importance, as is protecting the identity of people who test positive for the new coronavirus to prevent stigmatization. The SAFE Resolution in tandem with the Illinois Department of Public Health’s guidelines will achieve that. pic.twitter.com/qB8yhMYV5m — Commissioner Scott Britton (@CmsrBritton) April 23, 2020
Other commissioners also have raised concerns, sending the proposal back to committee for further consideration.
Suburban police chiefs and leaders spoke in favor of the resolution, stating that police and firefighters need the data to take safety precautions when entering a house with the coronavirus. They insisted the information would be kept confidential and was necessary given shortages of personal protective equipment.
Hazel Crest police Chief Mitchell Davis, on behalf of the South Suburban Association of Chiefs of Police, said it would be “irresponsible” not to warn officers who are about to head into close quarters with someone infected with COVID-19.
“If the dispatcher sending the officer also knowingly had information that the suspect had previously shot and killed officers and did not share that information to warn responding officers, that omission of information could have deadly consequences,” Davis wrote, arguing that COVID-19 information was just as crucial.
The resolution was decried by advocacy groups on privacy and efficacy grounds, with Brian Johnson of Equality Illinois mentioning it would give first responders “a false sense of assurance” when entering houses not marked as containing COVID-19.
Michael Rabbitt, founding member of the Northwest Side Coalition Against Racism and Hate, said in a written comment that identifying coronavirus patients — who in Cook County are disproportionately black — subjects them to prejudice.
“From a harm standpoint, we must view this through the lens of the experiences people of color have had with the police, especially black and brown residents of Cook County,” Rabbitt wrote. “Given the history of systemic racism and shortcomings of police accountability, especially in Chicago, could this increase the risk of harm? Does this resolution actually ensure the safety of residents?”
Mayors and managers from Wheeling, Palatine, Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove and Riverside spoke in favor of the address-sharing resolution. Also during the public comment section, multiple advocacy groups spoke out for the need to depopulate jails amid fears of a “devastating outbreak” of coronavirus there.
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They advocated for more testing, data transparency and the release of nonviolent detainees, stating that social distancing is near impossible to maintain inside Cook County Jail and the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Harvey police investigating two homicides Wednesday as ‘possibly related’

The victim , later identified as Andre Carter , was dropped off at Ingalls Memorial Hospital with a gunshot wound @ @ @ @ @ died in surgery a couple hours later before police had a chance to interview him @ @ @ @ @

Two fatal shootings in Harvey Wednesday about six blocks and 12 hours apart are being investigated as possibly related due to their proximity, police said.
The first shooting is believed to have occurred at about 1:30 a.m. in the area of 154th Street and Lexington Avenue, acting Chief Robert Collins said.
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The victim, later identified as Andre Carter, was dropped off at Ingalls Memorial Hospital with a gunshot wound, Collins said. He died in surgery a couple hours later before police had a chance to interview him, the chief said.
Carter, 25, of University Park, died of a gunshot wound to the abdomen, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. His death was ruled a homicide.
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About 12 hours later, about 1 p.m., Harvey police responded to another gunshot victim.
Rufus Johnson, a 36-year-old Chicago resident, was found shot multiple times in the middle of Lexington Avenue at 148th Street, Collins said.
He was pronounced dead just before 3 p.m. at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and his death also has been ruled a homicide.
Collins said police believe Johnson may have been shot from a vehicle, given where his body was found, but have not identified any potential suspects or vehicles involved.
No one is in custody in connection with either slaying and Collins said police did not have a motive for Carter’s shooting.
zkoeske@tribpub.com
Twitter @ZakKoeske


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Food delivery fees in Chicago targeted by proposed ordinance; alderman calls for 5% cap

Another delivery-service giant , GrubHub , declined to comment on the record about the Chicago proposal .
A spokesperson for @ @ @ @ @ a few weeks ago regarding the San Francisco cap , telling them , “ An @ @ @ @ @ wrong step at exactly the wrong time : not only could it lower pay for @ @ @ @ @ would disrupt an essential supply chain of meals to San Francisco seniors and families at @ @ @ @ @ ”

Thanks to the pandemic shutdown, demand for food delivery has boomed — and lawmakers have increased their attention to third-party services like GrubHub and DoorDash.
At Wednesday’s City Council meeting, Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd, introduced an ordinance that would cap delivery fees collected by third-party services at 5% of each online order. The ordinance also dictates that any service fees charged to customers would go directly to delivery drivers.
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These services typically charge restaurants two sets of fees. One is for marketing (being listed on the service), and runs about 10-15% of sales through the site. The other is a delivery fee, usually about 10% per order. Based on the proposal text, the Waguespack ordinance appears to take aim at the second fee, limiting it to 5%.
The proposed cap aims to relieve some of the costs burden for restaurants, and the portion allocating service fees for drivers is an attempt to put money in the delivery person’s pockets.
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As is, however, Chicagoan Scott Szczurek, who works as a delivery driver, said the proposal could have the opposite effect, although he doesn’t doubt Waguespack’s good intentions for local restaurants.
The portion of the proposal directing service fees to drivers would be effectively nullified, Szczurek said, since most third-party companies waive service fees these days in an effort to compete with one another. Moreover, another section of the proposal allows consumers to tip directly to restaurants, which would cut into the delivery drivers’ tips — already their main source of income.
“It seems like there is an institutional lack of awareness about how the drivers get paid, both from the consumers and from the restaurants,” Szczurek said. “And third-party providers are willing take advantage of that in the foundation of this business model."
Following news of Waguespack’s proposal, DoorDash issued a press release stating its opposition to the potential ordinance. The release outlined a number of issues with capped commissions, most notably that the measure would increase costs for consumers.
The release also noted that DoorDash has cut commissions for local restaurants in half through the end of May and offered a free first 30 days for new customers.
When asked for additional comment, DoorDash alluded to a quote from its senior government relations lead David London, which read in part: “This irresponsible and unconstitutional proposal would make it almost impossible for customers to get the food they need, deny earnings to drivers in a time when every dollar matters, and deprive local restaurants of badly-needed revenue.”
Another delivery-service giant, GrubHub, declined to comment on the record about the Chicago proposal. A spokesperson for the company spoke with Eater a few weeks ago regarding the San Francisco cap, telling them, “An arbitrary cap is exactly the wrong step at exactly the wrong time: not only could it lower pay for struggling delivery workers, it would disrupt an essential supply chain of meals to San Francisco seniors and families at their most vulnerable time.”
Third-party food delivery services have seen an increase in restaurants speaking out against their commission fees and business practices during the pandemic shutdown.
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If successful, the ordinance would repeal itself Jan. 1, 2021. It currently sits with the city Finance Committee, which likely won’t meet again until next month.
The proposal is similar to an emergency order issued earlier this month in San Francisco by mayor London Breed, which caps the total commission fees that restaurants pay to third-party delivery services at 15%.
Waguespack’s office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.


Chicago Violence 2020

While it ’ s tempting to order takeout or whip up a quick dinner using canned goods , the fresh @ @ @ @ @ to close in on their use-by date .
If you want to avoid your chicken @ @ @ @ @ wilting , the Food and Drug Administration provides a refrigerator and freezer storage chart so @ @ @ @ @ each food in your home is good for .

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 13 Police work the scene where four people were shot, including a 3-year-old girl on the 8600 block of South Damen Avenue on April 7, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
Many Chicago neighborhoods faced a grim first quarter of 2020 for gun violence. As of mid-March, homicides and shootings were up double-digits over the same time last year.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--The Spin: Pritzker extends stay-home order to May - with modifications | Chicago EPA workers fight T

The Spin: Pritzker extends stay-home order to May - with modifications | Chicago EPA workers fight Trump’s return-to-office call | U.S. Robin Kelly casting bailout vote today - with a mask at the ready

The extension comes as the governor says the state is starting to see a flattening of the curve - a @ @ @ @ @ will , even as the number of newly diagnosed cases and hospitalizations continue to climb @ @ @ @ @ Republican leader Jim Durkin sent a letter to Pritzker reiterating his requests for changes to @ @ @ @ @ sharing the epidemiological projections the administration is using in making its decisions .
You can @ @ @ @ @ .

Gov. J. B. Pritzker removes his protective mask before beginning his daily press briefing on COVID-19 in the James R. Thompson Center on April 6, 2020. (Raquel Zaldivar / Chicago Tribune)
On the one hand, Gov. J.B. Pritzker says he’s extending the statewide stay-at-home order through May 30, but read the fine print and it’s clear it charts a path to restarting the state’s economy.
In phases, more businesses will be allowed to reopen, state-run parks will at some point open the gates and elective surgeries – big revenue-generators for the healthcare systems - will resume May 1. Some Republican lawmakers were asking the Democratic governor for the changes and it sounds like there was a meeting of the minds.
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Little more than a year ago, political pundit David Axelrod predicted that the election of a new Chicago mayor along with a slew of new alderman, could lead to “a rambunctious group of young activists (on city council) who are not going to habitually adhere to the wishes of the mayor.”
That was on display yesterday when a small group of aldermen blocked Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s attempt to firm up her attempt to codify her executive order that allows her to spend and make other decisions to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Lightfoot countered that they were using the pandemic to “preen” in front of media.
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The controversy is likely moot because aldermen will meet again tomorrow and Lightfoot is likely to get signoff on the enhanced powers she’s seeking.
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, D-2nd, returned to Capitol Hill armed with masks and plenty of hand wipes for today’s expected approval of a nearly $500 billion measure to help businesses. The Senate approved the legislation earlier this week and President Donald Trump says he’ll sign it.
Welcome to The Spin.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker at the Thompson Center on April 19, 2020. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
The governor’s original stay-home order, which kicked in March 21 and already extended to next Thursday, April 30, will be in place until the end of May.
My Tribune colleagues Jamie Munks, Gregory Pratt and Dan Petrella detail the changes that begin May 1, including a requirement that anyone over 2 years old wear a mask or face covering when in a public place and unable to maintain a distance of six feet from others.
It opens the door to essential workers returning to the office or factory. Retail stores not designated as non-essential businesses will also be able to reopen to fulfill phone and online orders for curbside pick-up and delivery, under the new order. In addition, animal grooming businesses along with greenhouses and garden centers will be allowed to reopen.
And there will also be a phased-in reopening of state parks.
The extension comes as the governor says the state is starting to see a flattening of the curve - a near plateau, if you will, even as the number of newly diagnosed cases and hospitalizations continue to climb. Earlier today, House Republican leader Jim Durkin sent a letter to Pritzker reiterating his requests for changes to accompany the extension, including sharing the epidemiological projections the administration is using in making its decisions. You can read more about that here.
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“These orders have long-lasting effects on the people and businesses of Illinois, and it is only fair to publicly share the modeling that is being used to determine these critical actions,” Durkin wrote. “While we all know that modeling can change, the legislative branch, our residents and business owners deserve to know what the administration is using in its decision-making process.”
Upon Pritzker’s afternoon announcement, Durkin offered cautious praise in a statement to the media: “I want Illinoisans to know that the Executive Order is not final, but it is a working document subject to change. While I am pleased with today’s actions, we must do more to restore economic vitality of the state while maintaining the health and safety of our citizens.”
Hidden coronavirus outbreaks spread through cities like Chicago, New York far earlier than Americans knew, researchers say: Read the New York Times story here.
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The Illinois Department of Employment Security office in Springfield on Sept. 29, 2016. U.S. employment plummeted last month and will only continue to decline. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/TNS)
From the Associated Press: In Illinois, unemployment insurance claims dropped, but still topped 100,000. For the week ended April 18, 102,736 people in the state filed initial claims for benefits, down 38,424 from the previous week’s 141,160. In the comparable week a year ago, 8,209 Illinois residents sought benefits.
The AP also notes that the enormous magnitude of job cuts - the result of a pandemic that has all but brought the nation to a halt - has plunged the U.S. economy into the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Some economists say the nation’s output could shrink by twice the amount that it did during the Great Recession, which ended in 2009.
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Mayor Lori Lightfoot presides over a virtual meeting of the City Council from her office at City Hall in Chicago on Wednesday, April 22, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Connie Mixon, an associate professor of political science at Elmhurst College, reminded me today that Chicago’s original charter set out to have a weak mayor-strong City Council form of government. But with the rise of the Democratic machine — and the Republican machine before that — came the age of mayors who wielded almost ultimate authority. Consider the late Richard J. Daley, whose dual roles as party boss and Chicago mayor, meant he made decisions about everything from judicial appointments to which aldermanic campaigns might get a little extra cash.
So at City Hall, “there was fear there would be retribution with mayors previously if you didn’t go along with what the mayor wanted.”
A first-time officeholder, and a woman, “Lightfoot’s different, she hasn’t had enough time — nor do I think it’s her style — for those type of games other mayors have,” Mixon said. When she heard about the battle on the evening news, Mixon said, she right away thought, “They never would have done this with Daley or Rahm (Emanuel).”
“I think one it’s gender, I think also it’s that Lightfoot has not engaged in the kind of backroom deals that were pretty common under former mayors,” so the battles are now public. Mixon questions why there’s pushback, especially from some in the Black Caucus. Lightfoot is the first African American woman elected Chicago mayor and also “is the first mayor we’ve ever had talk about inequality in neighborhoods and making investments in black and brown communities.”
Alderman calls for City Council to meet twice monthly to respond faster to coronavirus crisis: The Tribune’s Gregory Pratt has the story here.
Lightfoot teams up with a George H.W. Bush White House Republican to launch COVID-19 economic recovery task force: The Tribune’s Gregory Pratt reports that the mayor will co-chair the task force with former President George H.W. Bush’s White House chief of staff Sam Skinner
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Committees under the task force umbrella feature political and business heavy hitters, including Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments; Bob Reiter, the Chicago Federation of Labor’s president; Evelyn Diaz, president of the Heartland Alliance; Karen Freeman Wilson, president and CEO of the Urban League of Chicago; Daniel Cronin, DuPage County board chair, and Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County board president. Read his full story here.
Congresswomen Robin Kelly, from left, Cheri Bustos, Nancy Pelosi, Jan Schakowsky and Lauren Underwood outside the Capitol Building on Jan. 4, 2019 in Washington. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly flew from Illinois to Washington yesterday in order to vote on yet another relief package amid the pandemic. Lawmakers will vote in small groups in order to adhere to social distancing measures.
Most of the funding, $331 billion, would go to boost a small-business payroll loan program that ran out of money last week. An additional $75 billion would be given to hospitals, and $25 billion would be spent to boost testing for the virus.
“Hopefully it will help the truly, truly small businesses — I think Mayor Lightfoot had talked about (how the city’s) average small business has 5-7 people. Of course, we know there are small businesses that have less than that," Kelly tells The Spin.
A class-action lawsuit was filed by small businesses against bigger banks, accusing the bigger financial institutions of overlooking them as they sought to dole out more money to larger clients. And there are concerns now that the new round of money already is spoken for.
Kelly says she wants to see the money flow through community banks with relationships to neighborhood businesses: “Hopefully that will dig deeper into the neighborhoods for businesses who felt left out — who were left out,” she said, noting that “small businesses are 50% of the economy.”
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Next up: Kelly along with U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, who spoke with MSNBC earlier today, both said lawmakers are already at work on the next relief package that will be directed at helping state and local governments who are spending millions on COVID-19 response while seeing sales tax and other revenues slow to a trickle amid stay-at-home orders that have closed businesses and triggered unemployment.
“We’ve had a hot spot in northern Illinois for a number of weeks, and our local communities have stepped up big time,” Underwood, a Naperville Democrat, told MSNBC. “Our police and fire departments are the ones who are having to sacrifice if our states and local governments are forced to run out of money. I’ve talked to mayors who said they’re going to run out of money by June 1 if we don’t step up at the federal level.”
President Donald Trump at the White House on April 20, 2020. (Alex Brandon/Alex Brandon/AP)
The Tribune’s Michael Hawthorne writes: "Well before the administration suspended a range of EPA enforcement activities during the COVID-19 pandemic, the downturn under Trump has been striking.
"In Illinois, Indiana and the four other Midwest states surrounding the Great Lakes, the number of water pollution cases filed by the EPA has declined during each of the past three years, according to a new analysis of agency records by the nonprofit Environmental Law and Policy Center. The president’s political hires also have purged dozens of career employees from the agency.” Read the full story here.
In a statement this week, the EPA said cleaning up the Great Lakes remains a priority.
In Chicago, EPA union pushes back on President Trump’s call for federal employees to prepare to return to their offices: The Tribune’s Hawthorne also has that story here.
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Thanks for reading The Spin, the Tribune’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to have it delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons. Have a tip? Email host Lisa Donovan at ldonovan@chicagotribune.com.
Twitter @byldonovan


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Cook County commissioners approve Preckwinkle staff member for seat on county health system board

The health system ’ s board was created 12 years ago to operate autonomously from Cook County politicians .
Story @ @ @ @ @ sweeping changes to add more county board oversight of the financially troubled health system , @ @ @ @ @ of the county ’ s $ 6.2 billion budget this year .
Though some criticized @ @ @ @ @ grab , Preckwinkle has said there is greater need for more communication between the hospital @ @ @ @ @ that finances it .

The Cook County Board ushered in one of President Toni Preckwinkle’s top staff members to the board in charge of the county’s health and hospital system on Thursday, deepening her influence on the body.
In the county’s first virtual board meeting since the coronavirus pandemic started, commissioners voted 17-0 in favor of appointing Otis Story to a seat on the Cook County Health and Hospitals System board of directors. Story, Preckwinkle’s deputy chief of staff since February, previously was chief executive officer of East Orange General Hospital in East Orange, New Jersey, until 2017.
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“I think he has a role to play,” Commissioner Larry Suffredin, D-Evanston, said. “Hopefully the independent board will be meeting next week and be meeting continuously to be part of the solution.”
The health system’s board was created 12 years ago to operate autonomously from Cook County politicians. Story’s appointment comes amid sweeping changes to add more county board oversight of the financially troubled health system, which is $2.8 billion of the county’s $6.2 billion budget this year. Though some criticized the move as a power grab, Preckwinkle has said there is greater need for more communication between the hospital system board and the county that finances it.
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In February, Preckwinkle and Cook County commissioners gave themselves veto power over the health system’s next CEO after the board ousted CEO Dr. John Jay Shannon in December. County officials also will financially advise Cook County Health administrators each month.
The county’s hospital system treats some of its poorest residents, operating Stroger and Provident hospitals as well as a Medicaid-backed insurance program called County Care. But steep budget shortfalls loom ahead this year as the system’s charity care, which is uncompensated for patients who cannot pay, is expected to balloon to nearly $600 million.
The two hospitals have taken on the greatest burden of charity care for Cook County residents, Preckwinkle has said. The county’s budget gap could reach $109 million in 2021, she said last year.
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Feds put kids at risk by failing to analyze data on schools’ use of seclusion and restraint, GAO say

Feds put kids at risk by failing to analyze data on schools’ use of seclusion and restraint, GAO says

For all but the nation ’ s largest school districts , there is no requirement that officials certify their data @ @ @ @ @ they haven ’ t used seclusion or restraint .
That , according to the GAO @ @ @ @ @ the practices are underreported .
In response , the Education Department said it will now @ @ @ @ @ the accuracy of the data they submit .

The isolated timeout space at the Southwest Cook County Cooperative Association for Special Education in Oak Forest. The school, which uses seclusion, was not included in the recent Government Accountability Office's report about the practice. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
This story is a collaboration between the Tribune and ProPublica Illinois.
Federal education officials failed to check the accuracy of data submitted by school districts on their use of seclusion and restraint and did not try to identify the ones that potentially overuse these methods, leaving children at risk of being mistreated, according to a new watchdog report.
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The Government Accountability Office’s report found the U.S. Department of Education’s attempts to determine how often schools use seclusion and restraint are “largely ineffective or do not exist.” A dozen Illinois schools with troubling data were highlighted in the report, issued this week.
One of two timeout rooms at Pathways school, in the Belleville Area Special Services Cooperative, near St. Louis. The school, which uses seclusion, was not included in the recent Government Accountability Office's report about the practice. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
Last year, a Chicago Tribune-ProPublica Illinois investigation analyzed 50,000 pages of incident reports created from September 2017 through December 2018 and determined that Illinois schools routinely isolated and restrained students for reasons that violated state law. “The Quiet Rooms” series also found the state did not oversee these practices and that school districts reported incorrect or incomplete data to the federal government, making it difficult to determine if and how seclusion and restraint were used in schools.
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The Education Department is “lacking information that could really help them determine whether certain schools’ and districts’ use of these practices could be excessive or discriminatory or both,” Jacqueline Nowicki, a director with the GAO, said in an interview. “Those are some serious effects of choosing not to analyze your data and take significant steps to ensure data quality.”
For all but the nation’s largest school districts, there is no requirement that officials certify their data is correct when they report they haven’t used seclusion or restraint. That, according to the GAO, is among the reasons the practices are underreported. In response, the Education Department said it will now require all districts to confirm the accuracy of the data they submit.
The GAO also did what it said the Education Department should have done: analyze the data. That analysis found a dozen Illinois special education schools were among those with the highest rates of seclusion and restraint per student enrolled in 2015-16, the year examined in the government report and the most recent period for which the data was made public.
All public schools are required to report their use of seclusion and restraint to the Education Department as part of the agency’s Civil Rights Data Collection, which is used to help investigate discrimination complaints and to ensure districts follow federal policies. The data, which was the focus of the GAO report, is collected every other year and published online.
Of the 52 schools or districts with the highest rates of physical restraint per student enrolled, 11 were in Illinois — by far the highest number from any state, according to the GAO’s analysis.
For seclusion, five of 36 schools highlighted for high rates per student came from Illinois, again putting it at the top. Two Illinois districts had the highest rates: the Sangamon Area Special Education District, which reported that 25 students were secluded an average of 27 times each, and the Bi-County Special Education Cooperative in northwestern Illinois, which reported putting 34 students in seclusion an average of 13 times each. Each district reported secluding students hundreds of times that school year.
Mark Strawn, the Sangamon district’s director of special education, said the district put students in seclusion 424 times last school year, down from 676 times in 2015-16. He said his district may be including incidents in its reporting that other districts don’t. The GAO report, in fact, says the Education Department should clarify its definitions of seclusion and restraint.
Officials at the Bi-County cooperative did not respond to a request for comment.
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The Southern Will County Cooperative for Special Education in Joliet, also highlighted in the GAO analysis, reported that about one-fourth of its students were restrained by employees an average of 16 times each, a rate higher than any other Illinois district. The district reported restraining students 441 times that year. Data obtained by the Tribune and ProPublica Illinois showed that the district restrained students 1,424 times in the 15-month period reporters examined. Executive Director Bill Roseland did not respond to a request for comment.
The Education Department likely would not have detected districts’ frequent use because it “had no rules that flagged outliers that might warrant further exploration,” according to the 58-page report released Tuesday. Without this kind of information, the department cannot enforce civil rights laws against discrimination, the report said.
“It is extremely alarming that even though we know that students, particularly students with disabilities and students of color, are being secluded and physically restrained at school, the Department of Education still can’t provide us with quality reporting to understand the scope of the problem and begin to solve it,” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said in a written statement.
“The Quiet Rooms” investigation, based on a database built from the details of 35,000 incidents in 100 school districts from September 2017 through December 2018, revealed children were put in isolation every school day for reasons that violated the law, which allowed seclusion and restraint only when students’ behavior posed a physical danger to themselves or others.
The day after the investigation was published, Illinois officials banned locked, isolated seclusion and floor restraints and ordered schools to alert the State Board of Education of every timeout and restraint used. The state also collected three years’ worth of incident data. Illinois officials have since decided to allow floor restraints next school year, though pending legislation could ban them.
Illinois now collects incident data from schools but did not for the past two decades. Nowicki said the GAO’s research included visiting nine districts, where investigators were told that schools benefited when they were required to collect and submit data at the state level.
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“We did find that in districts that were in states that had state-based reporting requirements, many of those district officials told us that helped them report better data and use their data to examine whether they might need to make changes to their own practices,” she said in an interview.
In Illinois, some districts reported zero incidents of seclusion and restraint to the federal government, even though records obtained by ProPublica Illinois and the Tribune showed that the interventions had been used. Crystal Lake District 47, for example, put students in seclusion more than 120 times in the 2015-16 school year but reported that it didn’t use seclusion at all during that time.
The Education Department’s reporting system would not have caught that error because it only flags a district for reporting zero incidents of seclusion and restraint and asks for verification if that district is among the 100 largest in the country. Crystal Lake officials told reporters last year that the omission was a mistake but then repeated it in the 2017-18 reporting year.
The GAO made six recommendations to the Education Department, including changing its reporting system to flag any district that reports zero incidents because “misreporting is a problem among districts of all sizes.” Identifying patterns through data can help schools determine whether they need more staff training and support services, the report states.
The GAO also recommended the department analyze school-level data and identify troublesome trends, including high incidences of seclusion and restraint.
In a March letter included with the report, the Education Department said it agreed with the recommendations and would implement them.
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An Education Department spokesperson said the department has made “significant reform efforts” since the 2015-16 data collection, including more data analysis and an increase in outreach to districts. In August, the department clarified reporting requirements and received corrected seclusion and restraint data from dozens of districts, the spokesperson said.
Schools already have submitted data for the 2017-18 year, but it has not been released publicly. The next data collection will be for the current school year, which was cut short for districts around the country in March because of the spread of COVID-19.
Here are the Illinois school programs named in the Government Accountability Office report as having the highest rates of physical restraints per enrolled student or the highest rates of seclusions per enrolled student, in alphabetical order:
∗ AERO Special Education Cooperative
∗ Bi-County Special Education Cooperative
∗ Bond/Christian/Effingham/Fayette/Montgomery ROE
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∗ Cooperative Association for Special Education
∗ Eisenhower Cooperative
∗ Henry-Stark Counties Special Education District
∗ Kendall County Special Education Cooperative
∗ North DuPage Special Education Cooperative
∗ Northern Suburban Special Education District
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∗ Northwest Suburban Special Education Organization
∗ Sangamon Area Special Education District
∗ Southern Will County Cooperative for Special Education
Jennifer Smith Richards is a Tribune reporter. Jodi S. Cohen is a reporter for ProPublica Illinois.
jrichards@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot enlists former President George H. W. Bush’s White House chief of staff

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot enlists former President George H. W. Bush’s White House chief of staff in launching COVID-19 economic recovery task force

Lightfoot also said the city will ask the federal government for money to help replace lost revenue , though she @ @ @ @ @ have a specific figure to share .
Lightfoot also said she wants more money for @ @ @

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has enlisted the help of former President George H.W. Bush’s chief of staff in launching an economic recovery task force to help guide the city’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Lightfoot announced the COVID-19 Recovery Taskforce outside the Water Tower downtown as a nod to the city’s resilience and recovery from the Great Chicago Fire.
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“We are the great American city of Chicago," Lightfoot said. "We must be a model for the rest of the nation on how to move forward, and we will be.”
Lightfoot will co-chair the task force with former White House chief of staff Sam Skinner.
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There also will be working groups dedicated to policy and economic stimulus, mental and emotional health, marketing and business development, regional coordination and economic change study.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot talks about the coronavirus economic recovery plan on April 23, 2020, at the Water Tower. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
The committees feature political and business heavy hitters, including Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments; Bob Reiter, the Chicago Federation of Labor’s president; Evelyn Diaz, president of the Heartland Alliance; Karen Freeman Wilson, president and CEO of the Urban League of Chicago; Daniel Cronin, DuPage County board chair; and Toni Preckwinkle, Cook County board president.
“As Chicago goes, so does the entire Chicagoland region and very much vice versa,” Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot also said the city will ask the federal government for money to help replace lost revenue, though she said she didn’t have a specific figure to share. Lightfoot also said she wants more money for homeless housing.
The task force’s work will include creating a plan to help residents coping with grief, fear and loss, address COVID-created unemployment, keep Chicago a hot spot for tourism and events, and making sure recovery efforts “are aligned across multiple jurisdictions,” the mayor’s office said.
Preckwinkle said she was excited to work with Lightfoot and regional leaders “during this turbulent time.”
“There’s no silver bullet for turning things around, but I’m convinced we can improve our regional outlook through collaborative efforts,” Preckwinkle said.
gpratt@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @royalpratt


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Planning a June wedding? Couples stay on track by going virtual during the coronavirus pandemic

“ We don ’ t know , at this point , if we have to postpone because of the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ “ We ’ ve talked about it , and we would like to postpone it @ @ @ @ @ really waiting to hear from our reception venue .
... Of course we want our @ @ @ @ @ to put on my dress and walk down the aisle .
But at the same @ @ @ @ @ concerned about the health and safety of others and our guests because of the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ to do our part in preventing the spread .
”

It’s no secret that large gatherings, including weddings and other milestone celebrations have been put on hold. Many engaged couples have found themselves in a difficult situation when it comes to their nuptials. But the bridal industry is here to help keep the wedding planning on track through virtual dress shopping and appointments, engagement photo shoots and finding the perfect venue.
Janice Jackson started planning her wedding immediately after her January engagement to Andre Heidelberg, 55. The 41-year-old police communications officer, who lives in Englewood, says everything was set for her upcoming wedding, planned for June 13.
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Janice Jackson and her fiance, Andre Heidelberg, stand for a photo in her apartment with her wedding veil on April 23, 2020. They are undecided about canceling their June wedding. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
“We don’t know, at this point, if we have to postpone because of the coronavirus,” she says. “We’ve talked about it, and we would like to postpone it, but we’re really waiting to hear from our reception venue. ... Of course we want our day — I really want to put on my dress and walk down the aisle. But at the same time, we’re concerned about the health and safety of others and our guests because of the pandemic. ... We just want to do our part in preventing the spread.”
When it came to wedding planning, Jackson says she didn’t know where to begin until she came across Pamela Marie Bridal Boutique in Bridgeport, a virtual bridal shop.
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Owner Pamela Marie Perkins-Phillips helps women find their perfect wedding dress by providing personal look books via email. With 15 years in the bridal industry, Perkins-Phillips says she had the idea for a virtual bridal shop about five years ago and made the shift in January, ahead of the pandemic. So far, Perkins-Phillips says she has helped nine brides find their dresses, including Jackson.
“Dress shopping can be overwhelming,” Perkins-Phillips says. “We send them a survey to find information about their wedding, personal style and budget. Then find photos to build a look with at least three dresses and veil, with wedding party colors if applicable, all via email.”
The next steps include physically going with the brides and their friends and family to try on dresses in stores. Perkins-Phillips says she has two brides still waiting to receive their dresses after ordering before the pandemic, including Jackson.
She hasn’t gone to stores since the stay-at-home order, but she’s working with manufacturers and dress shops to get dresses for two brides.
“From dress shopping to picking out the right one, she made it easy,” says Jackson.
Similarly, Janice Yoder, owner of Adore Bridal in Morton, came up with the idea of virtual appointments a few years ago. She says some brides aren’t comfortable going inside stores and trying on dresses with a stranger while a large group stares at you.
“I thought about doing this for years but didn’t want to get into another business adventure,” Yoder says. “But this pandemic put that idea in full motion.”
In just five days, Yoder says, the shop created a system for managing and operating virtual appointments. In addition to help with dresses, Adore Bridal is offering virtual appointments for bridal accessories, bridesmaid dresses and suit/tuxedo fittings.
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She says the shop has shipped 12 bride boxes filled with three to five wedding dresses to brides across Illinois. Brides first complete the shop’s virtual style form and can opt for a virtual appointment to see dresses before shipping. Adore Bridal also offers an optional Zoom call, so brides can share the potential dresses with the shop, friends and family.
The bride boxes include a packing list, an “I said yes” sign, and a video tutorial on how to put on the dress and use the clips. Yoder says brides can text the shop for tips on measuring, sizing, color options for bridesmaid dresses and payment.
If you already have your dress or just want to announce your engagement, consider a virtual photo shoot with your fiance or fiancee.
For a little over a week, Chicago-based photographer Kristina Ryon has been offering engagement photos over Zoom.
Kristina Ryon, a wedding photographer who started taking engagement photos via the FaceTime app, works from home in Oak Forest, Ill., with clients Jon Sanfilippo and Kayleigh Ramos on April 22, 2020. Ryon changed her business model because of the stay-at-home order. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
“I came up with the idea to do engagement photos over Zoom or FaceTime from a photographer who was offering boudoir sessions in another state,” says Ryon. “And thought why not do that here, but also for couples for engagement sessions whose photo shoots had fallen through since the pandemic?”
Ryon describes the process as simple and similar to a “normal session”; she assists with wardrobe before the shoot, and offers advice on where to find the best lighting and how to pose.
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“The major difference is the quality,” she says. “You can’t get them blown up as huge canvases, but you can share them all over social media and via text. ... It’s not about how you get your photos taken; it’s a matter of you still are able to get them done and have those memories to look back on. There are ways to still have your sessions done even in a crazy pandemic.”
She says she has more engagement shoots lined up over the next two weeks and is setting up wedding appointments through Zoom.
Or, if you have your wedding planned and are wondering how to navigate moving forward, Jackie Pappas, sales manager for event venue Morgan’s on Fulton, recommends that couples keep in contact with their creative teams to discuss alternative dates and policies.
She says she’s seen an increase in brides looking to book their venues for November and December of this year, as well as the early months of next year.
“At this moment, we have not postponed anything. All the weddings we have booked are for June to October. We’ve been working individually with each bride on a weekly basis, and we’re waiting for government guidelines with how to proceed,” she says.
Pappas says the couples she talks to are still staying positive and have a backup plan in place. Some brides are looking at nontraditional months and off-season peaks, while others are planning for dates early next year, with the possibility of this year’s ceremonies getting postponed.
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For couples in the midst of wedding planning during the pandemic, “I would express that, at this time, the best thing to do is be positive,” says Pappas. “Not a matter of if but when. It might not be the date they originally booked, but they will still get married. People need to keep that in mind. There are a lot of things to do during this time.”
hgreenspan@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Chicago chef pivots and opens tamale pickup spot after pandemic puts his seafood restaurant on hold

But even with some help , he struggled at first to produce them fast enough .
“ We finally have @ @ @ @ @ Espinoza .
“ It takes about 15 minutes to make 50 to 60 tamales .
@ @ @ @ @ to make things faster.
” He ’ s focused on speed , because he wants @ @ @ @ @ an affordable level for the neighborhood .
But tamales are also labor-intensive to make , @ @ @ @ @ the best products he can .
“ Now I know why my grandparents had so @ @ @ @ @ Espinoza , “ so they could help make tamales !
”

Like a lot of restaurateurs, Daniel Espinoza had big plans for 2020. While planning to remain as executive chef at Cantina Laredo in River North, he was also getting ready to open a neighborhood restaurant in Avondale. It was going to focus on mariscos, or Mexican seafood dishes, and was just weeks away from opening.
“We know what happened,” says Espinoza, referring to the coronavirus pandemic and the closing of all Illinois restaurant dining rooms. With those plans on hold, he had to dream up something else fast. “I was sitting around wondering, ‘What can we sell that would be easy for pickup and would freeze well for people?’” says Espinoza. “That’s when the idea for Santa Masa Tamaleria came about.”
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Chicken tamales from Santa Masa Tamaleria. Daniel Espinoza started making the tamales from his home but soon realized he needed more space, and transferred operations to the kitchen of his yet-to-open Mexican seafood restaurant. (Nick Kindelsperger / Chicago Tribune)
Tamales aren’t a new fixation for Espinoza. Turns out, he has a family connection that stretches back decades. “My grandparents sold them for 60 years in Mexico,” says Espinoza. “That’s how they helped our family.” When he was a kid, he’d go to the Mexican state of Michoacan with his dad to visit his extended family and to experience the tamale tradition. “My dad would always tell me, ‘This is where we come from and what we do,’” says Espinoza. “It’s so familiar to be around tamales.”
His mom would also make them for family and friends in Chicago. “I didn’t understand it as a kid, but everyone from Michoacan would get so excited when she made them,” says Espinoza. Around Christmas, she made huge batches of corundas, which are triangle-shaped tamales.
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That doesn’t mean that it’s been easy setting up a tamale-making operation. At first, he was trying to cook everything out of his home kitchen, but after making over 1,800 tamales, he realized that he needed more space. Now he’s cooking out of the kitchen that was going to be his seafood place.
But even with some help, he struggled at first to produce them fast enough. “We finally have a system,” says Espinoza. “It takes about 15 minutes to make 50 to 60 tamales. We tried every little way to make things faster.” He’s focused on speed, because he wants to keep the price at an affordable level for the neighborhood. But tamales are also labor-intensive to make, and he wants to use the best products he can. “Now I know why my grandparents had so many kids,” says Espinoza, “so they could help make tamales!”
A batch of rajas con queso tamales (12 for $15), from Santa Masa Tamaleria, a new operation by Chicago chef Daniel Espinoza. (Nick Kindelsperger / Chicago Tribune)
This week, Santa Masa offered chicken tamales in red or green salsa, along with rajas con queso (roasted poblano chile strips with cheese), which cost $15 for a pack of 12. To make them, he’s using coarsely ground fresh masa from Los Gamas Tortilleria (3333 W. Armitage Ave.), a family-owned establishment in Logan Square.
But he’s already dreaming up some different tamale fillings. He’s planning to do a collaboration with Marcos Carbajal of Carnitas Uruapan and make chicharron tamales. “He’s got the best chicharron in the country, and I’ll fight anyone who disagrees,” laughs Espinoza. He’s also excited about producing uchepos, which are fresh corn tamales.
According to Espinoza, things are going surprisingly well. Each week the number of orders has increased. “I told my wife, numbers don’t lie,” says Espinoza. “We thought we were opening a mariscos place, but maybe it’s going to be a tamaleria?"
He still hasn’t given up hope for opening the seafood restaurant when the restrictions end, but he definitely wants to continue Santa Masa Tamaleria in some fashion. “I would love a little counter shop with a display case of tamales,” says Espinoza. “We’d have just a few regular tamales, along with maybe a rotating chef creation. The only thing that scares me is that none of us knows what the future holds. I should be looking for a permanent spot for Santa Masa right now, but I have to wait.”
Espinoza plans to offer chicken tamales in red or green salsa and rajas con queso tamales next week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Email Espinoza at santamasachicago@gmail.com for more details and pickup information.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Alderman calls for City Council to meet twice monthly to respond faster to coronavirus crisis

He will introduce his plan to the council on Friday , when the body reconvenes to vote on Mayor Lori @ @ @ @ @ ordinance that gives her the authority to spend and move money within the city budget @ @ @ @ @ to the COVID-19 crisis .
The mayor adjourned Wednesday ’ s meeting after aldermen blocked @ @ @ @ @ the Friday meeting to come back and vote on it .

Jeff Levine, left, attorney with the city's Law Department, and Mark Flessner, Chicago corporation counsel, flank Mayor Lori Lightfoot on April 22, 2020, as she presides over the City Council Zoom meeting from her City Hall office. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
The Chicago City Council should meet twice as often during the coronavirus stay-at-home order to act faster on plans to deal with the emergency, an alderman said Thursday.
North Side Ald. Andre Vasquez, 40th, said he will introduce a plan to the council this week to require the body to have twice-monthly meetings during the pandemic, instead of meeting once a month as usual.
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Vasquez pointed to ordinances brought forward this week by colleagues to set caps on the fees collected by food delivery services during the stay-at-home order and to require Chicagoans to wear masks in public as ideas that need a swifter response.
“We clearly have the capability to do this, so if it helps us act more quickly, let’s do it,” Vasquez said.
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He noted a section of the municipal code stipulates the City Council should meet on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month unless another date and time is set for the next meeting. For decades, the council has set its regular meetings for just one Wednesday per month.
“It’s right there in the code, so let’s do what the code says,” Vasquez said.
He will introduce his plan to the council on Friday, when the body reconvenes to vote on Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s emergency powers ordinance that gives her the authority to spend and move money within the city budget without aldermanic approval to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. The mayor adjourned Wednesday’s meeting after aldermen blocked the measure, and set the Friday meeting to come back and vote on it.
The mayor’s office didn’t immediately respond to questions about the proposal.
jebyrne@chciagotribune.com
Twitter @_johnbyrne


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Column: Want some good news? This new Riverview Bridge for pedestrians over North Branch of the Chic

Column: Want some good news? This new Riverview Bridge for pedestrians over North Branch of the Chicago River

Yet the design still makes people feel safe up there .
The railings angle inward , bringing an aluminum handrail @ @ @ @ @ railings themselves are like a picket fence — transparent from some angles , opaque from @ @ @ @ @ as they rise , like the branches of a tree , which helps the bridge @ @ @ @ @ .

Pedestrians jog over the North Branch of the Chicago River while using the Riverview Bridge. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
With Chicago’s lakefront wisely closed to prevent gatherings that could spread the deadly coronavirus, the need for other open spaces is crucial, not just so people can get exercise, but so they don’t go stir crazy.
Fortunately, an ingenious piece of urban infrastructure — a gently curving, ultralong pedestrian and bike bridge over the North Branch of the Chicago River — is helping to meet that need.
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Quietly wending its way northward from Addison Street, the 1,010-foot-long Riverview Bridge links two previously separated city parks: Clark Playlot Park on the river’s east bank and California Park on the west bank.
The $14.4 million span officially opened in late November, but only now, with the advent of spring and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, is it proving its true worth.
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When I visited last Monday, pedestrians, joggers, cyclists, people pushing baby strollers and dog walkers were using the bridge. Those people, I hasten to add, were maintaining proper social distancing, assisted by the span’s generous, 14-foot-wide path.
Memo to Chicagoans: Don’t read this review, crowd the bridge and prompt Mayor Lori Lightfoot, our much-admired Queen of Keeping Apart, to shut it down.
Designed for the Chicago Department of Transportation by Andrew Metter, a former principal at the big Chicago architecture and engineering firm of Epstein, the bridge reflects former Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s drive to transform areas along the still-polluted but cleaner river into venues for recreation and relaxation — in effect, a second lakefront.
One of the fruits of that effort, the splendidly sculptural, Jeanne Gang-designed WMS Boathouse at Clark Park, sits to the south of the bridge.
Lights illuminate the Riverview Bridge as pedestrians walk over the north branch of the Chicago River. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Next year, when the city finishes another riverfront project to the north, the reconstruction of the Irving Park Road Bridge over the river, it will have created a continuous stretch of waterfront open space, nearly 2 miles long, from Clark Playlot Park to Horner Park.
What makes the Riverview Bridge such a pleasure is the way it makes such connections — not through one-dimensional brute force, but with an unconventional design that takes many things into account, including the industrial character of the neighborhood and the trees and vegetation along the river’s banks.
“It’s a beautiful green swath through the city,” Metter told me in a telephone interview. “The notion was: How can we improve, not scrape it.”
A conventional design would have torn out the trees and bushes to make way for an asphalt path built atop landfill held in place by steel retaining walls. A dinky bridge, running straight across the river, would have joined the east and west banks.
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Ho hum!
Instead, working with Greg Osborne, Epstein’s director of civil engineering, Metter came up with something better: A path that starts on the river’s banks, then becomes a bridge as it separates from them and crosses the river on a curve.
The engineering is appropriately straightforward, given the utilitarian character of nearby buildings, including a ComEd power station and an air-supported dome that serves as practice field for the Chicago Fire soccer team.
Simple, round concrete columns support a cantilevered concrete deck with angled railings of russet-colored Cor-ten steel. There are no pretentious attempts to make the columns look thin and elegant, as if they were high heels.
The deck's curves accommodate the recommended turning radius for bicycles and allow the path to slope gradually and continuously, without landings.
To satisfy the Coast Guard, which mandated that the bridge be higher than nearby spans, the highest point of the bridge’s deck is nearly 23 feet above normal water level. That requirement turned out to be a plus.
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Being on the bridge is a little like floating in the air, as if you were a hawk catching an updraft and surveying the scene below.
Concrete columns support the new Riverview Bridge, which blends beautifully with its surroundings, both natural and industrial. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
Yet the design still makes people feel safe up there. The railings angle inward, bringing an aluminum handrail close to pedestrians. The railings themselves are like a picket fence — transparent from some angles, opaque from others. They get thinner as they rise, like the branches of a tree, which helps the bridge fit into its natural setting.
Lighting is nicely integrated into the railings. At night, the bridge glows softly — a handsome sculpture.
You may be wondering: Did the bridge cost more than a conventional trail? After all, building a trail on the ground is usually less expensive than building a trail in the air.
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In an email, Osborne responded that the bridge cost “roughly the same” as a typical path. He cited several factors that held the cost down: Utilities didn’t have to be moved. The city didn’t need to pay for private land. Far less landfill was used than in a conventional design. Some landfill was used. Trees and the river banks were preserved.
“The clear choice became the alternative with less impacts,” he wrote.
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This is infrastructure the way it should be: Responsive to its surroundings, both natural and man-made, and serving the needs of both utility and beauty.
The bridge would be welcome under any circumstances. It is an especially bright addition to the cityscape in these dark times.
Blair Kamin is a Tribune critic.
bkamin@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @BlairKamin


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--At least 20 Chicago suburbs require face coverings in public — something most people in Illinois wil

At least 20 Chicago suburbs require face coverings in public — something most people in Illinois will have to do beginning May 1

The suburbs ring the city and , for the most part , require face coverings when visiting or working at @ @ @ @ @ remain operating under the statewide stay-at-home order .
Most exempt children younger than 5 or @ @ @ @ @ not require masks while walking , running or biking as long as 6 feet of @ @ @ @ @

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Air travelers with and without face masks use a moving walkway toward their gates at Midway International Airport in Chicago on April 19, 2022. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
At least 20 suburbs require masks or face coverings to be worn in public to curb the spread of COVID-19, something everyone older than 2 in Illinois will have to do on May 1.
The suburbs ring the city and, for the most part, require face coverings when visiting or working at businesses that are allowed to remain operating under the statewide stay-at-home order. Most exempt children younger than 5 or 2, and many do not require masks while walking, running or biking as long as 6 feet of social distancing in maintained.
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Starting May 1, everyone in the state will be required to wear a face covering when they are in public and social distancing of 6 feet cannot be maintained, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said at his Thursday briefing.
Here are the suburbs that already required that:
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WGN-TV contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--Could remote learning extend into fall? CPS is preparing for the possibility that schools won’t reop

Could remote learning extend into fall? CPS is preparing for the possibility that schools won’t reopen after Labor Day.

“ Our original working knowledge was that this was a temporary thing .
It ’ s now been extended through @ @ @ @ @ and some of the models have us even planning — not planning , but realizing @ @ @ @ @ may be the new normal even in the fall , '' she said .

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Chicago Public Schools is preparing for the possibility that remote learning will continue in the fall.
Asked about that prospect at an unrelated news conference Thursday, Lightfoot said, “We don’t know that at this stage, but I think one of the things all of us are thinking about, and obviously CPS is as well, is ‘what if?’ and making sure we’re truly prepared.”
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With next year being the earliest a coronavirus vaccine could become available, "we have to be prepared for a lot of different contingencies, including a worst-case contingency,” Lightfoot said. “We want to make sure our children learn.”
[ CPS tries to connect with kids who aren’t participating in remote learning. ‘We need to find out why ... and we need to find that out quickly’ ]
Lightfoot said she’s “very concerned” about student learning over the past several weeks and about how it’s going to go for the remainder of the school year.
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She said the city is particularly worried about a summer slump this year, amid the uncertainty.
“We want to stand up systems and structures now to be prepared but also to continue to support our young people in particular,” Lightfoot said.
CPS CEO Janice Jackson addressed the matter at Wednesday’s Board of Education meeting.
“Our original working knowledge was that this was a temporary thing. It’s now been extended through the end of the year and some of the models have us even planning — not planning, but realizing — the possibility that this may be the new normal even in the fall," she said.
The current school shutdown has been extended several times, including now through the end of the academic year.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--How Illinois responded to coronavirus compared with other states

A Chicago case study , highlighted in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ’ s weekly mortality report , @ @ @ @ @ or small — can lead to a proliferation of coronavirus cases between households in a @ @ @ @ @ and social distancing measures had been implemented in Illinois to curtail the spread of the @ @ @ @ @ a mild respiratory illness shared a takeout meal with a couple of close friends mourning @ @ @ @ @ in Chicago .
The next day , the man attended the funeral .
A few @ @ @ @ @ another family for a birthday party .
The man later tested positive for the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ days , he had close contact with several people at these family gatherings and apparently @ @ @ @ @ to an investigation by the Chicago Department of Public Health .
Three died after catching @ @ @ @ @ the report .

Compared with the rest of the country, Illinois responded quickly to the coronavirus crisis, issuing a stay-at-home order, closing nonessential businesses and banning gatherings for its almost 13 million residents.
When will these measures start to be lifted and how? Gov. J.B. Pritzker has addressed how to answer those questions. As have national experts. The Tribune will keep track of those efforts here.
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Stay-at-home order
California was the first state to demand its residents stay home, but Illinois became the second state to institute far-reaching statewide restrictions ordering residents to stay home as of 5 p.m. on March 21.
Many in Illinois have observed the order, but warm weather coupled with open trails, beaches and parks along the lakefront in Chicago enticed residents to forgo social distancing measures. Mayor Lori Lightfoot immediately closed these areas — causing some internet memes depicting her enforcing the state’s stay-at-home order and clearing citizens from the public way. As the White House’s coronavirus coordinator warned Cook County could become a hot spot for a rapid increase of cases, Lightfoot cautioned Chicago could expect up to 40,000 hospitalizations as a result of the virus.
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“That is why, if you don’t act responsibly and stay at home like you’ve been ordered to do, we will be headed for a situation like we’re seeing play out catastrophically every day in New York. This will push us to the brink.” — Mayor Lightfoot on March 26, 2020
When Illinois recorded over 10,000 new coronavirus cases, the governor and Chicago’s health commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, called for people heading out of their homes to wear face masks as officials focus on slowing the virus.
Pritzker extended the stay-at-home order through the end of April and estimated the spread of the disease would peak later in April. With updated models predicting the new coronavirus would not peak in Illinois until mid-May, Pritzker again extended Illinois’ stay-at-home order to May 30 with some modifications. Beginning May 1, surgery centers and hospitals could schedule elective procedures; retail stores not designated as non-essential businesses -- including greenhouses and garden centers -- can begin to take orders for curbside pickup; and state parks can reopen with social distancing procedures in place. Face coverings will also be required for every person in Illinois when out in public.
When asked how the city will determine when the stay-at-home order can be phased out, Lightfoot said, “We’re a long way away from that.”
Closing schools
Almost half of the states closed their schools on March 16, just one day before all kindergarten through 12th grade schools — public and private — in Illinois were closed. This shutdown was scheduled to last until May, but Gov. Pritzker canceled the rest of the school year on April 17. Illinois joins almost 30 states that have ordered or recommended the cancellation of the remainder of the school year. Two more are closed indefinitely.
For Chicago Public Schools, it’s the second shutdown this school year, following an 11-day teachers strike in October.
Vaughn High, in Portage Park, was shut March 9, after officials announced that a classroom aide who had traveled on a cruise ship the previous month had tested positive for the infectious disease and been hospitalized.
Illinois schools began making the transition to remote learning on March 31, but the closures left some schools scrambling to set up remote or e-learning options for students and guide parents who have never home-schooled. Questions about how to provide equal access for all students became even more pressing.
The Illinois State Board of Education gave districts a lot of leeway in how to provide remote instruction and how to account for student work.
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Closing nonessential businesses
Pritzker’s order lists dozens of business categories considered essential, from gas stations, hardware stores and banks to food production and accounting services. Such companies are encouraged to remain open while other businesses were told to cease operations beginning March 21, unless their employees can work from home.
Questions have been raised, however, about what really constitutes an essential business. Chicago has already received hundreds of complaints about nonessential businesses operating in violation of the order — including Bikram Yoga West Loop, which said it stayed open because it was a place of “health and wellness.”
What actions should be taken by critical workers who must still show up for work?
Under its new guidelines for essential workers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that exposed employees take their temperatures before their shifts, wear face masks and practice social distancing at work. They also are advised to stay home if they are ill, not share headsets or other objects used near the face and refrain from congregating in crowded break rooms.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, also half-jokingly suggested we should never shake hands again.
“I mean it sounds crazy, but that’s the way it’s really got to be,” he said. “Until we get to a point where we know the population is protected” with a vaccine.
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Banning gatherings
The White House issued guidelines on March 16, recommending the avoidance of social gatherings of 10 or more people. Five days later, after greatly reducing the number of people allowed to gather as called for in the state’s stay-at-home order, all public and private gatherings in Illinois were banned.
A Chicago case study, highlighted in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly mortality report, explains how gatherings — large or small — can lead to a proliferation of coronavirus cases between households in a community. Before shelter-in-place orders and social distancing measures had been implemented in Illinois to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, a man with a mild respiratory illness shared a takeout meal with a couple of close friends mourning the death of a relative in Chicago. The next day, the man attended the funeral. A few days later, he joined another family for a birthday party. The man later tested positive for the coronavirus. Within a matter of days, he had close contact with several people at these family gatherings and apparently infected 10 people, according to an investigation by the Chicago Department of Public Health. Three died after catching the virus, according to the report.
Pritzker cast doubt on this year’s warm weather festivals.
From my perspective today, I do not see how we are going to have large gatherings of people again until we have a vaccine, which is months and months away. — Gov. Pritzker on April 9, 2020
Restaurant and bar limitations
After a weekend in which St. Patrick’s Day revelers attended bar crawls — despite the cancellation of parades and Chicago’s annual river dyeing — and the number of people testing positive for the coronavirus neared 100, Pritzker mandated all restaurants and bars in the state closed for dine-in business as of end of day on March 16. Some decided to stay open by fulfilling takeout, delivery or curbside orders only.
Many other states also quickly banned dine-in options. West Virginia, however, was a holdout. On March 16, before anyone in the state tested positive for the coronavirus, Gov. Jim Justice told his state’s residents to continue with their daily activities. “If you want to go to Bob Evans and eat, go to Bob Evans and eat,” he said during a news conference that day. The following day, the state confirmed its first case of the virus and Justice demanded all restaurants in West Virginia be closed before midnight on March 17.
Health policy initiatives
Medicare, Medicaid, all group health plans, and individual health insurance policies are required to cover testing and associated visits related to the diagnosis of coronavirus during the federally-declared emergency period as part of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which was signed March 18. The Kaiser Family Foundation notes this new federal law also creates a federal emergency paid sick leave program through December 2020.
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Some states have also implemented their own policies, “requiring insurers to cover a COVID-19 vaccination with no cost-sharing if and when one becomes available,” or “requiring state-certified insurance carriers to waive patient cost-sharing for COVID-19 treatment, as well as treatment for other related conditions, including pneumonia and the flu,” according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Illinois has not yet pursued these measures.
Illinois is one of many states across the country that has struggled to test for the new virus amid a national shortage of testing kits and supplies. Pritzker acknowledged this week that Illinois has fallen far short of processing 10,000 tests a day for the virus, a goal he laid out in late March.


chicagotribune--2020-04-23--This Chicago toy store was supposed to be celebrating opening a third location. Now, all are dark.

“ There ’ s no way that me doing personal shopping appointments is going to make up for the traffic @ @ @ @ @ would generate , but it ’ s at least keeping us in people ’ s @ @ @ @ @ level of income that pays a few bills here and there , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ gives me a sense of purpose .
”

Ann Kienzle saw early signs of the COVID-19 pandemic firsthand at a toy industry event in New York in late February.
There was less handshaking and more hand sanitizer than usual. Attendees from China were absent. Still, it seemed like the kind of thing that would affect toymakers’ ability to source products from China, but otherwise have little impact on toy shops like hers, called Play, in Chicago.
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By mid-March, toys normally kept out for young customers to play with were hidden away. On St. Patrick’s Day, she closed stores to shoppers, including a new location in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood that had opened after remodeling on March 14 — just three days earlier.
She kept offering curbside pickup and local delivery. Then the state’s order closing nonessential businesses cut off even those sales, forcing her to furlough all 14 employees.
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[ Pandemic pivot: How Chicago-area businesses and workers are managing the coronavirus crisis ]
“In less than two weeks, it went from ‘This will be weird,’ to ‘This will be something bigger than we imagined,’” she said.
Kienzle, who opened her first store in Logan Square 10 years ago but never sold toys online, had to figure out a new way to do business.
Her social media post offering to assemble Easter baskets and ship them to families was flooded with responses. A friend helped her set up a website where people could register for 30-minute virtual shopping appointments. A dozen baskets got lost in the mail, but the rest made their way to homes in 15 states.
Kienzle said she plans to offer personal shopping sessions three or four days a week, for families buying birthday gifts or an activity to entertain kids stuck home from school. Sometimes that means video-chatting with little kids, sometimes it’s a call with an adult who just seems happy to talk to someone, she said.
“There’s no way that me doing personal shopping appointments is going to make up for the traffic and business that three stores would generate, but it’s at least keeping us in people’s minds and bringing in some level of income that pays a few bills here and there,” she said. “Also, it gives me a sense of purpose.”
Days with no shopping appointments are for other tasks needed to keep the business going, including applying for COVID-19-related financial assistance for small businesses. Kienzle said she was told she is in line for the next round of funding through the Paycheck Protection Program, which has run through the $350 billion set aside as part of the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package.
Owner Ann Kienzle is seen April 20, 2020, at her Play toy store in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
Every day, she thinks about what’s ahead for the business. Will there be three stores? No stores? Could she resume operations gradually, with curbside pickup and an employee in each store doing virtual shopping? What if there’s a second wave of infections in the fall, or during the critical holiday season?
“So much depends on how quickly the order is lifted, or to what level they can lift it. I feel like we’ll come out of it maybe looking a little different, with a few bruises or a few scars,” she said.
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She feels hamstrung by rules that say she has to close her doors, while big chains that sell essentials like food and household products can also sell the same kind of merchandise she carries. Even restaurants are allowed to stay open for pickup orders.
[ Physical therapist embraces telehealth, and masks ]
Kienzle said she hopes consumers think carefully when choosing whether to shop at large chains or local merchants.
“You’re deciding what you want your community to look like after this,” she said.
lzumbach@chicagotribune.com
Editor’s note: The coronavirus pandemic is forcing Chicago-area companies and workers to face harsh realities about their paychecks and their place in the local economy. The Tribune is reaching out to hear, and share, their stories.