The Latest Breaking News from Illinois Department of Public Health

State public health officials move away from ‘outdated’ COVID testing positivity rate in favor of hospital metrics

The change in coronavirus data reporting follows new guidelines set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which place more emphasis on hospitalizations and case rates per 100,000 residents.

Chicago Sun-Times · Apr 12, 2022

Illinois COVID-19 cases rising: ‘Critically important’ for immunocompromised to get vaccinated, boosted

Coronavirus cases have increased in Chicago by 27% since last week. And for the first time in about a month, four southern Illinois counties have hit the “high transmission” threshold set by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, meaning masks are recommended for people gathering…

Chicago Sun-Times · Apr 8, 2022

Chicago COVID-19 cases on the rise, but Arwady says city should ‘be able to evade a very large surge’

Cases have been on an incline since March 21, but it’s still “nothing alarming at this point,” Chicago Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said of the mini-spike that’s being driven by the BA.2 subvariant.

Chicago Sun-Times · Apr 5, 2022

Nearly 10,000 women traveled from out of state to have an abortion in Illinois in 2020 — a 29% increase

CHICAGO — Nearly 10,000 women traveled from out of state to have an abortion in Illinois in 2020, a roughly 29% increase compared with the previous year, according to the most recent Illinois Department of Public Health data available.

Chicago Tribune · Jan 25, 2022