Get the latest news from around Illinois.
State Journal-Register: COVID-19 has ‘slowed tremendously’ in Illinois
The head of the state Department of Public Health said Sunday that the transmission of the new Coronavirus had “slowed tremendously” in Illinois, “but, of course, it’s not enough to have completely made sure that it died out.”
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, credits the slowing to statewide actions such as the stay-at-home order. She said the spread has not stopped completely because people still leave home for essential work or to buy groceries, creating the opportunity for transmission.
Chicago Sun-Times: Downstate pockets spared by COVID-19 are shrinking — and pain is growing
The barber shops and hair salons in Downstate McLeansboro are closed, but the liquor stores are open.
The southern Illinois town of 2,872 is in Hamilton County, which saw its first case of the coronavirus on Saturday.
The Center Square: Illinois’ long-term care residents are a large portion of COVID-19 deaths
Illinois’ nursing home residents account for an outsized portion of deaths attributed to COVID-19.
New information released Sunday shows long-term care facilities where residents or staff have contracted the virus and also lists the number of deaths. As of Sunday, 286 long-term care residents have died, presumably due to COVID-19, the novel coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China. The information lists more than 1,800 cases but does not discern between cases borne by residents or health care workers.
Chicago Tribune: New data shows far reach of COVID-19 in Illinois nursing homes: At least 286 deaths, nearly a quarter of the toll in the state
Amid revelations of alarming and deadly COVID-19 outbreaks at nursing homes, the Pritzker administration on Sunday released for the first time details of the number of cases and deaths tied to each long-term care facility in Illinois.
The data highlights the extent of the pandemic’s reach inside the state’s nursing homes, showing at least 186 long-term care facilities in 22 counties reporting at least one case. In all, at least 1,860 cases can be tied to nursing homes, with 286 deaths. That’s nearly a fourth of all coronavirus deaths reported in Illinois.
State Journal-Register: Clock ticking on fair maps amendment as priorities shift
Under uncertain circumstances, the leading group of 29 organizations pushing for voters to have another option to make a change to the Illinois constitution this fall has lost some momentum as the coronavirus has placed the General Assembly on hiatus.
But CHANGE Illinois is continuing to push through the deadline that is unlikely to be met.