AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneMar 11, 2021 at 5:00 amFirst came a tough spring surge, when COVID-19 killed thousands of Illinois residents. Then, an even more brutal one in the fall and winter.Through it all, Illinois managed to avoid the overwhelmed hospitals seen in other states. But a new Tribune analysis of pandemic deaths shows that the two waves took an extraordinarily high toll on the state’s population.Looking at federal estimates of excess deaths — how many more people died than is usually expected — Illinois ranked among the 10 worst states (including the District of Columbia)...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneMar 11, 2021 at 5:00 amFirst came a tough spring surge, when COVID-19 killed thousands of Illinois residents. Then, an even more brutal one in the fall and winter.Through it all, Illinois managed to avoid the overwhelmed hospitals seen in other states. But a new Tribune analysis of pandemic deaths shows that the two waves took an extraordinarily high toll on the state’s population.Looking at federal estimates of excess deaths — how many more people died than is usually expected — Illinois ranked among the 10 worst states (including the District of Columbia)...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 06, 2021 at 5:00 amMarj Leopardo is 85. Her husband, Sam, is 88. They both have health issues. And their days are now consumed with one thing: the vaccine hunt.The Crystal Lake couple are, on paper, just the kind of people the government wants at the front of the vaccine line. But they live in a country that’s struggled with the rollout, and in a state that’s struggled more than others.So that has meant reaching out daily to doctors’ offices, pharmacies, hospitals, the local health department. It has meant their daughter stalks websites to hunt for an...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 06, 2021 at 5:00 amMarj Leopardo is 85. Her husband, Sam, is 88. They both have health issues. And their days are now consumed with one thing: the vaccine hunt.The Crystal Lake couple are, on paper, just the kind of people the government wants at the front of the vaccine line. But they live in a country that’s struggled with the rollout, and in a state that’s struggled more than others.So that has meant reaching out daily to doctors’ offices, pharmacies, hospitals, the local health department. It has meant their daughter stalks websites to hunt for an...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 01, 2021 at 6:22 pmA Chicago woman was charged with felony criminal damage after police said she smashed a grocery store window with a baseball bat over a dispute about her not wearing a face mask.Edith Chaparro-Hernandez, 28, of the Belmont Cragin neighborhood, was arraigned Sunday in Cook County court on the charge that stemmed from an alleged encounter two weeks earlier.AdvertisementPolice say she walked into a grocery store in the 4800 block of West Diversey Avenue shortly before 8 p.m. Jan. 15 without a mask. Prosecutors in court identified the store...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneFeb 01, 2021 at 6:22 pmA Chicago woman was charged with felony criminal damage after police said she smashed a grocery store window with a baseball bat over a dispute about her not wearing a face mask.Edith Chaparro-Hernandez, 28, of the Belmont Cragin neighborhood, was arraigned Sunday in Cook County court on the charge that stemmed from an alleged encounter two weeks earlier.AdvertisementPolice say she walked into a grocery store in the 4800 block of West Diversey Avenue shortly before 8 p.m. Jan. 15 without a mask. Prosecutors in court identified the store...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneDec 14, 2020 at 11:12 amThe rate of violent crime on CTA trains and platforms has more than doubled this year, even though the number of riders has dramatically dropped and Chicago police have stepped up patrols and surveillance, according to a Tribune analysis of police and CTA data.Ridership this year on the “L” system has been down 61% through September compared with the same period in 2019, according to the CTA. In some months during the spring and summer, it was down more than 85%.The number of crimes has dropped, too, but not nearly as much as ridership....…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneDec 14, 2020 at 11:12 amThe rate of violent crime on CTA trains and platforms has more than doubled this year, even though the number of riders has dramatically dropped and Chicago police have stepped up patrols and surveillance, according to a Tribune analysis of police and CTA data.Ridership this year on the “L” system has been down 61% through September compared with the same period in 2019, according to the CTA. In some months during the spring and summer, it was down more than 85%.The number of crimes has dropped, too, but not nearly as much as ridership....WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneNov 07, 2020 at 6:54 pmIllinois COVID-19 hospitalizations are rising so quickly that, in roughly a week, the number could surpass the highest tally seen in the spring surge, a Tribune analysis has found.And the skyrocketing admissions are raising new concerns that some hospitals could eventually be packed with patients.If the virus can’t be slowed, Gov. J.B. Pritzker told reporters Thursday, “we are going to experience a surge in hospitalizations much higher than where we are now. And in some areas of our state that will mean that you’ll run out of hospital...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneNov 07, 2020 at 6:54 pmIllinois COVID-19 hospitalizations are rising so quickly that, in roughly a week, the number could surpass the highest tally seen in the spring surge, a Tribune analysis has found.And the skyrocketing admissions are raising new concerns that some hospitals could eventually be packed with patients.If the virus can’t be slowed, Gov. J.B. Pritzker told reporters Thursday, “we are going to experience a surge in hospitalizations much higher than where we are now. And in some areas of our state that will mean that you’ll run out of hospital...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneOct 27, 2020 at 8:03 amMayor Lori Lightfoot defended her plan to begin issuing speed camera tickets for cars going 6 mph over the limit, declaring on Monday “it’s clearly a public safety issue” while pushing back against criticism that the proposal is a cash grab that will hurt lower-income Chicago motorists.Lightfoot also said the city has seen “exponentially” more “speed-related accidents and deaths” this year, which she used to support her argument for implementing new speed camera standards that will catch more drivers.Advertisement“This is about making...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneOct 27, 2020 at 8:03 amMayor Lori Lightfoot defended her plan to begin issuing speed camera tickets for cars going 6 mph over the limit, declaring on Monday “it’s clearly a public safety issue” while pushing back against criticism that the proposal is a cash grab that will hurt lower-income Chicago motorists.Lightfoot also said the city has seen “exponentially” more “speed-related accidents and deaths” this year, which she used to support her argument for implementing new speed camera standards that will catch more drivers.Advertisement“This is about making...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJul 04, 2020 at 8:27 pmEven as concerns rise about a resurgence of COVID-19 cases in Illinois, newly released state data show that deaths and outbreaks continue to drop among long-term care facilities, where most deaths have been concentrated.As of Friday, weekly deaths at long-term care facilities dropped below 100 for the first time since the Illinois Department of Public Health began publishing more detailed data in April. The latest weekly tally, 84 deaths, is less than a fifth of the high mark two months ago.AdvertisementDeath figures are characterized by...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJul 04, 2020 at 8:27 pmEven as concerns rise about a resurgence of COVID-19 cases in Illinois, newly released state data show that deaths and outbreaks continue to drop among long-term care facilities, where most deaths have been concentrated.As of Friday, weekly deaths at long-term care facilities dropped below 100 for the first time since the Illinois Department of Public Health began publishing more detailed data in April. The latest weekly tally, 84 deaths, is less than a fifth of the high mark two months ago.AdvertisementDeath figures are characterized by...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJun 22, 2020 at 9:44 amAt the start of June, public health officials wondered whether major street protests over police killings of African Americans would lead to a spike in coronavirus cases.Crowds of people, at times shoulder to shoulder, had marched through Chicago and some suburbs at a time when people had been told for weeks to stay away from each other as much as possible.AdvertisementDr. Ngozi Ezike, the state’s health director, it a “cause for concern,” while the city’s top health official recommended demonstrators avoid people older than 60 or with...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneJun 22, 2020 at 9:44 amAt the start of June, public health officials wondered whether major street protests over police killings of African Americans would lead to a spike in coronavirus cases.Crowds of people, at times shoulder to shoulder, had marched through Chicago and some suburbs at a time when people had been told for weeks to stay away from each other as much as possible.AdvertisementDr. Ngozi Ezike, the state’s health director, it a “cause for concern,” while the city’s top health official recommended demonstrators avoid people older than 60 or with...WW…

AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneMay 28, 2020 at 7:54 pmAs the state moves toward aimed at curbing the coronavirus pandemic, health officials have offered a new way to study how often people are recovering from the infection.It’s called the recovery rate, and the Illinois Department of Public Health began publishing the figure on its over Memorial Day weekend. The site states that, as of the last count, 92% of those who tested positive for the virus have recovered.AdvertisementThe figure may seem self-explanatory, but experts caution that the latest number must be interpreted carefully, with...…AdvertisementBy Chicago TribuneMay 28, 2020 at 7:54 pmAs the state moves toward aimed at curbing the coronavirus pandemic, health officials have offered a new way to study how often people are recovering from the infection.It’s called the recovery rate, and the Illinois Department of Public Health began publishing the figure on its over Memorial Day weekend. The site states that, as of the last count, 92% of those who tested positive for the virus have recovered.AdvertisementThe figure may seem self-explanatory, but experts caution that the latest number must be interpreted carefully, with...WW…