When it comes to industrial pollution, it’s often Chicago’s Latino and Black communities who bear the brunt. In those communities, past industrial abuses still cast a shadow with the air, water, and soil pollution resulting in higher rates of asthma, cancer, lead poisoning and other health issues.

Pennsylvania on Saturday becomes the first major fossil fuel-producing state in the U.S. to adopt a carbon pricing policy to address climate change. It joins 11 states where coal, oil and natural gas power plants must buy credits for every ton of carbon dioxide they emit.

Budding plants and blooming trees signal the return of spring, triggering congestion, coughing and sneezing for the millions of seasonal allergy sufferers. With COVID-19 still circulating, how can you tell if your stuffy nose is just a case of hay fever and not something more? Here’s what you need to know.

Construction of the Obama Presidential Center is underway in Jackson Park, and residents on the South Side are bracing for what it will mean for their communities — benefits or displacement. 

Department of Water Management Commissioner Andrea Cheng said federal funding will “jump-start” Chicago’s efforts to remove the lead service. Cheng acknowledged logistical challenges have meant the program has failed to achieve what Lightfoot promised in September 2020, when she vowed that the city would remove 650 pipes by the end of 2021.

Rates were close to 94% for measles, whooping cough and chickenpox vaccinations for the 2020-21 school year. That was down 1% from a year earlier and means 35,000 U.S. children entered kindergarten without evidence that they were vaccinated for extremely contagious diseases, the CDC said in a report.

State and local officials offered some mixed messaging Monday on whether or not public transit riders would be required to wear mask after a federal court ruling. The day ended with Gov. J.B. Pritzker lifting his executive order.

Public health officials are sounding the alarm about an increase in mental health issues among young people, saying the pandemic aggravated what was already a crisis.

WTTW News is partnering with 22 other newsrooms in the Chicago area to find out how our communities are living through the long-term effects of COVID through a survey and community conversations.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued the revised executive order hours after Chicago health and transportation officials told riders a state order required them to keep masking up.

Cancer cells develop in nearly all prostates as men age, and most prostate cancers are harmless. About 34,000 Americans die from prostate cancer annually, but treating the disease can lead to sexual dysfunction and incontinence.

Title 42 was issued in March of 2020 as a public health order to expel migrants due to coronavirus concerns. The CDC decided this month that the order is no longer needed.

Dr. Juan Caicedo says it’s important to have culturally appropriate programs to increase and encourage organ donation among Latinos.

The InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer is about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage, the FDA said, and can be used in doctor’s offices, hospitals and mobile testing sites. 

Chicago has three finalists for potential casino sites, but residents of those communities have mixed feelings. Some fear a rise in crime and the impact a casino could have on neighboring small businesses. Others are hopeful it could provide good paying jobs.

The Illinois Department of Public Health is warning about a slow rise in COVID-19 cases throughout the state. It comes amid rising cases nationwide, and after Philadelphia announces it will reinstate its indoor mask mandate.