For three days in a row, state health officials reported record highs in the number of new COVID-19 cases in Illinois. That streak ended Sunday but the state’s positivity rate crept up to 8%.

State health officials reported 7,899 new cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, the third consecutive day in which Illinois saw its highest number of new infections within a 24-hour period since the coronavirus pandemic hit the state.

Illinois reports a record 6,943 new COVID-19 cases in a single day, surpassing the previous record set one day earlier. As cases rise so do tensions between Gov. J.B. Pritzker and business owners amid pandemic-related closures.

“It’s unfortunate,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Friday. “Look, this disease is unrelenting, it doesn’t care about what the location is and what we’re trying to do here is to limit the cases, the hospitalizations and the deaths.”

Kenosha, Wisconsin, just over the Illinois border, became the epicenter of violent unrest this summer after the police shooting of Jacob Blake. A few months later, Kenosha is in the midst of early voting – and it’s a hotly contested county.

Brandis Friedman sits down with Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to talk about where things stand now with the pandemic and where they’re headed. 

Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a grave warning on Thursday as Illinois officials reported 6,363 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, telling residents that the pandemic has entered the most dangerous phase since the spring.

Nine of the state’s 11 regions have triggered the state’s fail-safe metrics designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus, with the addition of much of West-Central Illinois, including Springfield and Quincy, on Thursday.

Restrictions ordered by Gov. J.B. Pritzker to stop the spread of COVID-19 take effect at midnight Friday. Mayor Lightfoot altered her plan to align with the restrictions laid out by the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Applications for unemployment aid fell 40,000 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. They fell in 30 states, including big drops in California, Florida and Texas. But claims rose significantly in Arizona, Illinois and Michigan.

Surging COVID-19 infection rates triggered new restrictions that will take effect Friday in Chicago. What that means for the small business owners who can no longer serve diners and drinkers indoors.

By the end of the week, Chicago and the surrounding suburbs will be operating under tightened rules designed to stop the spread of the coronavirus, including a suspension of indoor services at bars and restaurants.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she spoke with Gov. J.B. Pritzker for about an hour on Wednesday, a day after the serious split between the officials leading the effort to stem the pandemic spilled into public view.

Doulas are trained to provide support to pregnant women during labor and delivery. But the arrival of COVID-19 has changed that hands-on relationship to one that relies on virtual connections.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot pushed back late Tuesday on Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s order to suspend indoor dining and drinking in Chicago, the latest sign of a serious split between the officials leading the effort to stem the pandemic.

When the pandemic hit, city officials found there was a significant information gap when trying to collect race and ethnicity data. What researchers at DePaul University is doing to help narrow that gap.