Families living in poverty are more likely to be involved with the child welfare system, according to a recent brief from the University of Chicago. As part of our “Firsthand: Living in Poverty” series, we look at the barriers facing families that need financial assistance.

The four-day music festival is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people to Grant Park, and many are concerned it could become a “superspreader” event. But city officials say it will go on as planned. 

More than 100,000 fans are expected to attend the massive four-day music festival that starts Thursday. “We’ve been having large-scale events all over the city since June without major problems or issues," Mayor Lori Lightfoot said.

On the 31st anniversary of the ADA, the Biden administration released guidance and resources to support people experiencing long-term effects of COVID-19, known as “long COVID,” as the condition shapes up to be a major, long-term public health issue.

Wheaton resident Jeri Davis had a lot of irreverent thoughts about chemotherapy, so she jotted down one-liners during her treatment sessions. With the help of more than dozen artists, she has now turned her witty insights into a coloring book.

The United States will keep existing COVID-19 travel restrictions on international travel in place for now due to concerns about the surging infection rate because of the delta variant, according to a White House official.

In her new book, author and psychologist Inger Burnett-Zeigler examines the stress, trauma and unacknowledged emotional suffering Black women have faced for generations, while offering a new way of being strong that includes being comfortable with vulnerability.

The United States is in an “unnecessary predicament” of soaring COVID-19 cases fueled by unvaccinated Americans and the virulent delta variant, the nation’s top infectious diseases expert said Sunday. 

Chicago Public Schools students and staff must continue wearing masks inside facilities and maintain 3 feet of social distancing where possible when in-person learning resumes at the end of August.

Residents and property owners in the city and state are seeking aid in recovering economic losses or securing housing. But for some Latino residents, language barriers and concerns over their immigration status keep them from getting the help they need.

Illinois is among a handful of Democratic-run states extending health insurance coverage to adult immigrants in the country illegally, including seniors.

The June 24 collapse at the oceanside Champlain Towers South killed 97 people, with at least one more missing person yet to be identified. The site has been mostly swept flat and the rubble moved to a Miami warehouse. 

Belated and beleaguered, the virus-delayed Tokyo Summer Olympics finally opened Friday with cascading fireworks and made-for-TV choreography that unfolded in a near-empty stadium, a colorful but strangely subdued ceremony that set a striking tone to match a unique pandemic Games.

The city is expanding a program that works to keep people from getting a drug offense and, instead, places them into treatment. Eleven police districts are currently eligible for the program, but officials say it will be available in all districts by the end of the year.

The historic Bronzeville neighborhood on the city’s South Side sits just south of McCormick Place, and has been known for decades as a hub of Black arts and culture in Chicago. Wednesday, City Council paved the way for a massive new development that could reshape the community’s future.

A “breakthrough” case is when a fully vaccinated person gets infected with the coronavirus. A small number of such cases are expected and health officials say they’re not a cause for alarm.