Note: Press conferences from Gov. J.B. Pritzker or Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot will be streamed live in the video player above.
Chicago’s top public health official delivered an update on the city’s travel order Tuesday, with several states inching closer to the threshold for being added to the city’s quarantine list.
That update came as Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker discussed the state's response to the coronavirus pandemic in downstate Jackson County, one of 11 counties that state health officials say is at a "warning level" for the spread of COVID-19.
Here are the latest coronavirus updates from around Illinois today, August 4:
CPS to Use Remote Learning Plan for Fall Quarter Amid Coronavirus Pandemic: Sources
Chicago Public Schools officials will announce Wednesday that the district will use a remote learning plan for the fall quarter amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, sources tell NBC 5's Mary Ann Ahern.
The decision comes as CPS officials and officials with the Chicago Teachers Union debated using a hybrid approach that would have allowed students to get two days of in-person instruction per week.
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Earlier Tuesday, reports had emerged that the CTU's House of Delegates was planning a strike vote next week if CPS adopted the hybrid learning plan, but that will no longer be necessary after news of the district's decision broke.
Dr. Allison Arwady Details Health Department's Approach to Return-to-School Debate
As the Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools continue to discuss what school will look like when it resumes in the fall, Chicago Department of Public Health Director Dr. Allison Arwady says that her department is carefully evaluating how to best keep children safe later this year.
During a Facebook Live discussion Tuesday, Arwady says she is in favor of in-person instruction if it can be done safely.
“I personally am in favor of having children in school,” she said. “(If) the child is at school wearing a mask with the social distancing and appropriate procedures in place, I honestly do not think the risk of spread is significant. I wouldn’t be promoting this if I thought it was.”
Chicago Will Check Social Media to Help Enforce Travel Order: CDPH Commissioner
Chicago health officials could check your social media if they believe you may have violated the city's travel order.
The city's top public health official said Tuesday that social media could be used as evidence to help enforce a quarantine requirement for anyone visiting or returning to the city from a list of states seeing a rise in coronavirus cases.
"One of the easiest ways to sort of get enough proof that there was the potential of a violated quarantine order without me having to send out an inspector or do any sort of more aggressive follow up to collect that is to look at social media," Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said.
Those social media posts could be used as proof to give someone a citation, she added.
"They're in any of the states that violated our order and then a few days later, they're in Chicago, and they're clearly out in Chicago, not just back, but at a restaurant or at the Bean or whatever it may be, and they're posting about that - that's an example of where we could use that as proof to issue citations," Arwady said.
She noted that the city isn't necessarily monitoring the social media accounts of travelers, but will check them if they "identify someone of concern."
"I don't want to like overemphasize that we're somehow Big Brother in monitoring people's social accounts - we're absolutely not doing that," Arwady said. "But where we already have a concern, it's one of the easiest ways to identify people who are not just breaking the travel order but flaunting it publicly."
Illinois Reports 1,471 New Coronavirus Cases, 19 Deaths Tuesday
Health officials in Illinois reported more than 1,400 new cases of coronavirus Tuesday, along with 19 additional deaths attributed to the virus.
According to data from the Illinois Department of Public Health, the 1,471 new cases bring the total number of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began to 184,712.
Tuesday's 19 additional fatalities bring the state’s death toll to 7,545, according to IDPH.
The number of coronavirus tests increased significantly from a day earlier, with 42,598 test samples returned to state laboratories over the last 24 hours. That's compared to the 28,475 reported Monday. In all, 2,849,395 tests have been conducted during the pandemic.
The state’s seven-day positivity rate dropped slightly Tuesday to 3.9% after reaching 4% Monday. The last time the state went above 4 percent in that category was on June 11, according to data compiled by the NBC 5 Investigates team.
Hospitalizations ticked up slightly, with 1,496 coronavirus patients in Illinois hospitals as of Monday evening. Of those patients, 365 have been admitted to intensive care units, while 125 are currently on ventilators.
The state’s recovery rate, defined as the percentage of patients who aren’t reporting coronavirus symptoms six or more weeks after their first positive test, still stands at 95 percent.
Chicago Travel Order Revised to Add Puerto Rico
Chicago's travel order was updated once again Tuesday, with Puerto Rico now on the city's quarantine list.
Last week, the city added four new states to its order - Wisconsin, Missouri, North Dakota and Nebraska - bringing the total number of states the city requires travelers to quarantine from to 22.
The city's travel order began on July 6 and is evaluated every Tuesday, with any additions taking effect the following Friday.
States are added to the list if they have "a case rate greater than 15 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 resident population, per day, over a 7-day rolling average." If they fall below that threshold, they could be removed as well.
On Tuesday, the city's top public health official said three states - Iowa, Kansas and Utah - dropped below the threshold to be on the travel order, and could be removed next week if those numbers continue to decline.
The states included are: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin.
Pritzker Discusses COVID-19 Response
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker held a news conference Tuesday morning to discuss the COVID-19 response in downstate Jackson County. That event began at 10:30 a.m. at the Southern Illinois University Student Center in Carbondale.
Jackson County is one of 11 counties in Illinois that are now at a "warning level" for coronavirus, the state's health department said Friday. The warning means each of the counties saw increases in two or more COVID-19 "risk indicators," the health department said.
The counties now under a warning include: Cass, Gallatin, Jackson, Jo Daviess, Johnson, Perry, Randolph, Saline, Sangamon, St. Clair, and White.
The counties each "saw outbreaks associated with business operations and activities posing higher risk for disease spread, including school graduation ceremonies, a rise in cases among late teens and 20s, parties and social gatherings, people going to bars, long-term care outbreaks, clusters of cases associated with restaurants and churches, and big sports events including soccer, golf, and softball tournaments," the health department stated.
Jackson County in particular reported an 8.8% positivity rate in coronavirus testing in the metrics that placed it in the "warning level," state health officials said, noting the case rate was 226 for every 100,000 residents - well above the target number of less than 50.
Cardinals' Series With Tigers Postponed; Expected to Resume Season vs. Cubs
The St. Louis Cardinals will be off for at least the next four days after their series against the Detroit Tigers was postponed due to the team's ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
The postponements mean the Cardinals won't play until at least Friday, when they are set to take on the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium.
In addition, Major League Baseball has reportedly canceled the "Field of Dreams" game, which would have pitted the Cardinals against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Pritzker Says It's Worth Considering Fines for Not Wearing a Mask in Public
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday that he believes it's "worthy of considering" fines for people who do not comply with the state's mandate requiring masks in public to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus.
Pritzker announced a new $5 million public awareness campaign on Monday with the tagline "It only works if you wear it," to encourage residents to wear face coverings. The initiative compares masks to seat belts in cars, bicycle helmets, life jackets and more in their life-saving capabilities.
Illinois' 7-Day Positivity Rate Reaches 4% as State Reports Nearly 1,300 New Cases
Health officials in Illinois reported nearly 1,300 new cases of coronavirus Monday, along with 10 additional deaths attributed to the virus.
According to data from the Illinois Department of Public Health, the 1,298 new cases bring the total number of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began to 183,241.
Monday's 10 additional fatalities bring the state’s death toll to 7,526, according to IDPH.
The number of coronavirus tests dropped from a day earlier, with 28,475 test samples returned to state laboratories over the last 24 hours. That number is roughly 10,000 less than Sunday's testing number and well below the nearly 50,000 tests reported Friday. In all, 2,806,797 tests have been conducted during the pandemic.
The state’s seven-day positivity rate rose Monday, reaching 4% for the first time in recent weeks. The last time the state went above 4 percent in that category was on June 11, according to data compiled by the NBC 5 Investigates team.
Hospitalizations ticked up slightly on Sunday, with 1,418 coronavirus patients currently in Illinois hospitals. Of those patients, 347 have been admitted to intensive care units, while 132 are currently on ventilators.
The state’s recovery rate, defined as the percentage of patients who aren’t reporting coronavirus symptoms six or more weeks after their first positive test, still stands at 95 percent.
Pritzker Launches $5M Campaign on Masks: ‘It Only Works If You Wear It'
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Monday launched a new $5 million public awareness campaign to encourage residents to wear masks or face coverings using the tagline: "It only works if you wear it."
The initiative compares masks to seat belts in cars, bicycle helmets, life jackets and other items in their life-saving capabilities.
“This campaign connects the dots between daily actions we take to keep ourselves safe and one the best things we can do to fight COVID-19: wearing a mask,” Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said in a statement on the campaign.
How Metrics in llinois, Indiana Compare to Other States
Illinois' increase in coronavirus cases over the past week has ranked 10th in the country, behind just 9 other states that are all considered "hot spots" for the spread of the deadly virus and have earned a place on the city of Chicago's emergency order requiring anyone traveling from those areas to quarantine for 14 days.
Here's a look at how the total number of cases, number of cases in the last week, total deaths and more compare in Illinois, Indiana and across all 50 states:
