Ultimately, it’s Pritzker who will make a decision about when bars and restaurants can reopen for indoor service. The city can set rules that are stricter than the state’s but not rules that are looser.
Additionally, Chicago will have six mass COVID-19 vaccinations sites up and running by next week, increasing the city’s capacity to give up to 25,000 shots per week, Lightfoot said Thursday.
But the mayor again said the city isn’t receiving enough vaccines from the federal government, noting that it would take a year and a half to vaccinate the entire city at the current pace of distribution.
Here’s what’s happening Thursday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
7:50 p.m. (update): Biden unveils $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan that includes $1,400 checks for most Americans
President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan Thursday to end “a crisis of deep human suffering” by speeding up vaccines and pumping out financial help to those struggling with the pandemic’s prolonged economic fallout.
Called the “American Rescue Plan,” the legislative proposal would meet Biden’s goal of administering 100 million vaccines by the 100th day of his administration, and advance his objective of reopening most schools by the spring. On a parallel track, it delivers another round of aid to stabilize the economy while the public health effort seeks the upper hand on the pandemic.
“We not only have an economic imperative to act now — I believe we have a moral obligation,” Biden said in a nationwide address. At the same time, he acknowledged that his plan “does not come cheaply.”
Biden proposed $1,400 checks for most Americans, which on top of $600 provided in the most recent COVID-19 bill would bring the total to the $2,000 that Biden has called for. It would also extend a temporary boost in unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures through September.
And it shoehorns in long-term Democratic policy aims such as increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, expanding paid leave for workers, and increasing tax credits for families with children. The last item would make it easier for women to go back to work, which in turn would help the economy recover.
6:38 p.m.: As new COVID-19 cases emerge in CPS, families plea for reinstatement of locked-out teachers
As Chicago Public Schools works through its first week of in-person learning since March, 100 educators are still considered absent without leave, meaning they have been denied pay and locked out of their Google accounts for failing to report to school buildings for an extended length of time.
The number of employees considered AWOL has declined from 143 Monday, reflecting 28 teachers and 15 paraprofessionals who by Wednesday had either swiped into their building or provided documentation CPS accepted as a valid reason for staying home.
But 846 school-based staff, including 463 teachers, still did not show up as expected on Wednesday, according to data provided by CPS.
The AWOL number is lower because it is only given to those who have repeated unexcused absences. District officials said they sent final notifications to more than 200 employees who had unexcused absences all five days last week, and 143 of them still did not report to work Monday and were considered AWOL.
With some day-to-day fluctuation, staff attendance rates have overall improved since last week, when the first wave of educators were called back to prepare for the return of students this Monday. On Jan. 4, only 60% of teachers and 74% of paraprofessional staff who were expected back swiped in, amounting to below 68% overall. That improved to 72% later in the week, 76% this Monday and roughly 78% both Tuesday and Wednesday, according to CPS figures.
District spokespeople have emphasized that any data provided is preliminary, and may not include personal or sick days that are often entered after the fact. The rates have already been adjusted multiple times since initial data released last week, as more staff are granted accommodations.
4:30 p.m.: Joe Biden unveiling ‘American Rescue Plan,’ a $1.9T stimulus to stem COVID-19 and steady the economy
President-elect Joe Biden is unveiling a $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan Thursday to turn the tide on the pandemic, speeding up the vaccine rollout and providing financial help to individuals, states and local governments and businesses struggling with the prolonged economic fallout.
Called the “American Rescue Plan,” the legislative proposal would meet Biden’s goal of administering 100 million vaccines by the 100th day of his administration, while advancing his objective of reopening most schools by the spring. On a parallel track, it would deliver another round of aid to stabilize the economy while the public health effort seeks the upper hand on the pandemic, said aides who described the plan ahead of a speech by Biden on Thursday evening.
It includes $1,400 checks for most Americans, which on top of $600 provided in the most recent COVID-19 bill would bring the total to the $2,000 that Biden has called for. The plan would also extend a temporary boost in unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures through September. And it shoehorns in the long-term Democratic policy aim of increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour and expanding paid leave for workers across the economy.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York has said Biden’s proposal will be his first order of business this year. The emergency legislation would be paid for with borrowed money, adding to trillions in debt the government has already incurred to confront the pandemic.
3:07 p.m.: Illinois House members told to self-quarantine after positive coronavirus test at Springfield convention center
Members of the Illinois House and staff were told to self-quarantine if they were at the Bank of Springfield Center on Thursday because someone who was at the facility tested positive for the coronavirus.
The instructions were issued in a memo from Jessica Basham, the chief of staff to the new House speaker, Emanuel “Chris” Welch.
”All members and staff who were at the BoS Center today, or around someone who was, should self-quarantine,” Basham wrote in an email to House members and staff. “I’m awaiting more specific information and instructions from DPH and will share them ASAP.”
The House convened for a brief time Thursday morning after the previous day’s inauguration and election of Welch to replace longtime House Speaker Michael Madigan.
1:30 p.m.: COVID-19 vaccine trial participants clamoring to get the real deal
Good news for tens of thousands of volunteers in the COVID-19 vaccine trials: Many of those who received a placebo are now being offered a vaccine — in some cases, earlier than they would otherwise have been eligible.
Participants in Pfizer’s vaccine study — some of whom had mounted a noisy campaign on social media — have been advised that anyone who wants one can receive the first of two shots by March 1. Participants in Moderna’s vaccine trial already are getting immunized.
That wasn’t always the plan, and some experts fear “unblinding” volunteers — that is, letting them know whether they got the vaccine or a placebo — could make it difficult to collect good, long-term data on the experimental vaccines, including how safe they are and when their immunity starts to wear off. But others argue it would be unfair to leave trial participants unprotected from a raging pandemic when an effective vaccine is available.
1:22 p.m.: Chicago bar offers $10,000 in gift cards to encourage COVID-19 vaccinations
In the vein of great bar and restaurant promotions — happy hour, two for one, kids eat free — comes the 21st century pandemic update: get vaccinated, get a free beer.
Legendary Roscoe Village bar Village Tap announced an unlikely public health initiative Wednesday on social media: Present proof of a COVID-19 vaccine, get a $10 gift card.
The 30-year-old bar said it would hand out 1,000 gift cards — $10,000 of free beer (or food from the Village Tap kitchen if you must).
12:15 p.m.: Chicago health commissioner: City will keep using COVID-19 tests that FDA says can give false negatives
With Mayor Lori Lightfoot looking on, Dr. Allison Arwady said the city sees no need to stop administering the Curative tests at city-run testing sites.
“We have looked closely, and our rates of positivity, the way that these tests are performing in these neighborhoods, is absolutely in line with what we are seeing in the other surrounding areas,” Arwady said during a news conference to promote vaccination at Richard J. Daley College on the Southwest Side.
“We feel very confident, based on what we’ve seen at this point related to this test. We do not have plans to move away from using it unless additional data were to come out,” she said.
The Food and Drug Administration last week issued a directive “alerting patients and health care providers of the risk of false results, particularly false negative results, with the Curative SARS-CoV-2 test.”
12:04 p.m.: 6,652 new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases and 88 additional deaths reported
Illinois health officials on Thursday announced 6,652 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 88 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 1,052,682 and the statewide death toll to 17,928 since the start of the pandemic.
Officials also reported 118,036 new tests in the last 24 hours. The seven-day statewide rolling positivity rate for cases as a share of total tests was 6.8% for the period ending Wednesday.
11:45 a.m.: Mayor Lori Lightfoot pushing for Chicago bars and restaurants to reopen for indoor dining ‘as quickly as possible’
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she wants the city’s bars and restaurants to reopen for indoor service “as soon as possible” and plans to discuss the issue with Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
“I am very, very focused on getting our restaurants reopened. If we look at the various criteria that the state has set, we are meeting most if not all of those. So that’s a conversation that I will have with the governor,” Lightfoot said at a news conference about the city’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution sites. “But I want to get our restaurants and our bars reopened as quickly as possible.”
Ultimately, it’s Pritzker who will make a decision about when bars and restaurants can reopen for indoor service. The city can set rules that are stricter than the state’s but not rules that are looser.
10:08 a.m.: Chicago poised to open new COVID-19 vaccination sites, but Mayor Lori Lightfoot says city needs more doses
Chicago will have six mass COVID-19 vaccinations sites up and running by next week, increasing the city’s capacity to give up to 25,000 shots per week, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Thursday.
But the mayor again said the city isn’t receiving enough vaccines from the federal government, noting that it would take a year and a half to vaccinate the entire city at the current pace of distribution.
”That is completely, totally unacceptable,” Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot also noted the city’s receiving fewer doses now than when the vaccines first became available, calling it “clearly the opposite direction of where we need to be going.”
7:20 a.m.: City to give update on COVID-19 vaccinations
Mayor Lori Lightfoot and city Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwardy were scheduled to give an update Thursday morning about coronavirus vaccinations in Chicago, according to city officials.
The news conference was scheduled for Thursday morning at Richard J. Daley College on the Southwest Side.
Arwady said Wednesday the city is looking at allowing hospitals to start the vaccination of at-risk patients age 65 and older as early as next week.
Check back for updates. —Chicago Tribune staff
6 a.m.: Overcoming needle phobia to get the COVID-19 vaccine: ‘A huge victory.’
As COVID-19 altered all aspects of daily life — and its death toll mounted — Allyson Clark longed to get immunized against the new virus once a vaccine became available, to protect herself and help the world return to normalcy.
But for her and millions of Americans suffering from a fear of needles, the distress associated with getting an injection can seem insurmountable.
“I was terrified of anything involving needles,” said Clark, 41, of the West Town neighborhood. “When they talk about fight-or-flight, it very much feels like that.”
Needle phobia effects from 3.5% to 10% of the general population, according to research estimates. Some degree of anxiety or distress around needles appears to be more even more prevalent. Gallup Polls in 1998 and 2001 found that needles ranked among the top fears of American adults, with 21% of respondents in both surveys saying they were afraid of needles or getting a shot.
That fear can have public health consequences when patients forgo medical care and vaccines.
Here are some recent stories related to COVID-19:
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