Alongside your turkey, pumpkin pie, and mashed potatoes, should we expect to see masks once more at Thanksgiving dinner this year? It’s looking like it. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker talked to the media at an event to showcase him getting his covid-19 booster shot (Pfizer) and didn’t rule that out. Pritzker said there’s a possibility he might lift the statewide indoor mask mandate in time for the holidays, but he doesn’t see it happening any time soon. Given that there’s only three weeks until Thanksgiving, it’s not looking promising. “What we’re trying to evaluate... Read More

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is ready to sign a new amendment that would allow employers to fire workers for refusing covid protocols including mandatory vaccinations, reports say. The Health Care Right of Conscience Act amendment bans employees from using their moral beliefs as a reason to refuse to comply with a workplace’s covid mandates, which could include mandatory vaccinations. The Illinois Senate voted 31-24 to approve the proposal late Thursday night. This measure passed out of the House on a 64-52-2 vote Wednesday. The new amendment now heads to Gov. JB Pritzker to be signed into... Read More

Even as covid numbers slowly decline in the state, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has said there may be tougher covid restrictions ahead. At a press conference this week, Pritzker noted that rather than a removal of the mask mandate and a pulling back of mitigations, covid restrictions may remain and be tightened up if numbers begin to rise like they did last fall. “If you go look at the hospitalizations – the new hospitalizations, as well as the ones that are, you know, existing in total – they are not dropping at the rate that they were dropping even a couple of weeks ago,” Pritzker said.... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Illinois won’t be lifting its mask mandate or any other covid restrictions any time soon, Gov. JB Pritzker said in his press conference Monday, adding that the covid numbers need to be “on a good downward trajectory” before he’d even consider removing any of the restrictions. “We’re watching to make sure that we’re on a good downward trajectory,” Pritzker said. “That’s what we were looking for back in May leading into June; it’s what we’re looking for now in order for us to possibly make changes.” Pritzker said the number of ICU beds being... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: California is becoming the first state to mandate covid-19 vaccines for kids attending school once the shots are federally approved for their age groups, and with Illinois following many of the same paths as the most-populous U.S. state, could Illinois be next? Several school districts in California are already requiring the vaccine for students, and the statewide mandate will begin for grades 7-12, then move to K-6, by summer 2022, pending FDA approval of the vaccines for those age groups. “These requirements are working, across the country,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom said.... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: The latest Illinois weekly covid-19 numbers are trending in a positive direction, with a third straight week of slowly declining numbers after two months of spiking cases. There were 21,787 new cases over the past week, a 16 percent decrease in infections over the previous week, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Deaths due to covid also fell about 16 percent from the previous week, and across the state, the positivity rate has dropped from 4.1 to 2.7 over the last week. Hospitals across the state also saw an 8 percent decline in covid patients, although southern... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Illinois students, teachers and school staff with confirmed and probable covid-19 infections are now required to be banned from schools and school activities due to an executive order signed by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. The executive order, signed late Friday night, states that people are required to remove themselves from schools or school activities if they have covid-19 or knowingly have been in close contact with someone who has the virus. The order states schools must exclude any student or school personnel with confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 for at least 10 days,... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Starting TODAY, Illinois teachers and school employees will be required to get a covid-19 vaccination or submit to weekly testing for covid-19 in order to continue working in the schools. The following e-mail was sent out to Rock Island School District 41 employees today. Variations of the same e-mail have been sent out to other school district employees across the state. Starting Monday, September 20, 2021 all RIMSD employees must be vaccinated OR get a COVID- 19 test each week. Fully vaccinated employees must submit proof by sending a copy of their vaccination card to the District... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: Southern Illinois regions have run out of available ICU beds, a dangerous metric that could trigger new, harsher covid-19 mandates from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. Southern Illinois reported Monday that it had no available ICU beds in an area of almost a half-million people, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. That marked the first time since the covid pandemic began that an Illinois region had reported no available ICU beds. Illinois Medical Professionals Action Collaborative Team, known by its acronym IMPACT, released a statement Tuesday, describing it as “signaling... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: As the covid-19 delta variant spikes numbers throughout the state of Illinois and schools are hit particularly hard, some officials and parents are calling to close schools and return to remote learning. More than 125 schools statewide — including several in the Quad-Cities area — have been hit with significant outbreaks of covid, according to the Illinois Department of Health. As of Friday, 128 outbreaks were active and causing significant absenteeism, according to the IDPH. Some of the worst outbreaks have been occurring in western and southern Illinois, and among Quad-Cities... Read More