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First responders, health care workers and correctional officers are on the front lines of the pandemic, and “we owe it to them to provide a safe place to quarantine,” said Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
The statistics are sobering. Data shows that nearly a quarter of all COVID-19 deaths in Illinois are tied to nursing homes and long-term care facilities. 
The only drive-thru COVID-19 testing site within Chicago city limits is now welcoming anyone with symptoms of the virus. We go for a look.
For parents who share custody of their children, or those in the process of divorce, the pandemic has turned situations that are challenging at best into much more complicated scenarios — virtually overnight.
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New statewide totals: 33,059 cases, 1,468 deaths

Gov. J.B. Pritzker says the state has secured relief options for student loan borrowers who weren’t previously covered by the federal CARES Act. The new options could benefit more than 138,000 Illinoisans, according to the governor’s office.
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The rapid spread of the coronavirus sparked the shutdown last month of colleges around the country. But not every student on campus had somewhere to go, or the ability to live without assistance.
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Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she expects Gov. J.B. Pritzker to extend the statewide stay-at-home order beyond April 30, which is “no longer a viable date” for that order to be lifted.
As Chicagoans hunker down amid the pandemic, we check in with some familiar faces on how they’re weathering the storm – and what weird shortage their households are experiencing. 
When MetroSouth closed down last year, residents worried about the impact on their community. Now, the hospital is set to reopen as an alternate care facility for COVID-19 patients—and many hope it will stay open for good.
Amid stay-at-home orders, park leaders are wondering how to help residents while keeping them safe. Thomas Wogan, executive director of the Blue Island Park District, says he’s trying to stay optimistic.
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Newly released data offers a look at the scope of the coronavirus outbreak at long-term care facilities throughout Illinois. It’s a population officials have been working to protect since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. 
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New statewide totals: 31,508 cases, 1,349 deaths

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order is set to expire April 30. And while he has yet to announce his plans for the state come May 1, he says he’s “looking at every aspect of the order” on a daily basis.
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Some big restaurant chains have obtained loans from the government under a small-business relief program, leading business groups to cry foul even though the loans are within the guidelines of the lending program.
Environmental organizations have petitioned the EPA to establish rules requiring companies to minimally disclose to the public that they’ve stopped monitoring and reporting pollution during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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One of America’s most iconic baseball parks is doubling as a food pantry as a growing number of Chicagoans struggle to provide for themselves and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Illinois State Board of Elections told federal officials they planned to use the funds to help local elections officials prepare for an expected “considerable increase” in the number of ballots cast by mail.
 

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