Travelers on airplanes and public transportation like buses and subways will be required to wear face masks starting next week to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Chicago is on track to advance from Tier 1 restrictions to Phase 4 on Sunday, according to state health officials. However, the change won’t result in expanded capacity for indoor dining and drinking at bars and restaurants, Chicago officials announced Friday.

The government’s top infectious disease expert said Friday he hopes to see children being vaccinated starting in the next few months. It’s a needed step to securing widespread immunity to the coronavirus.

“I am optimistic that we will be able to increase capacity soon, but it would be irresponsible and dangerous to rush our reopening and undo the incredible progress we have made as a city,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a statement.

Johnson & Johnson said Friday that in the U.S. and seven other countries, the single-shot vaccine was 66% effective overall at preventing moderate to severe illness, and much more protective — 85% — against the most serious symptoms.

The Northwest Side community of Jefferson Park is known as the gateway to Chicago, in part because it’s a transit hub. The area’s thought of by some as typical “bungalow belt” Chicago. It’s predominantly middle class, but recently there’s been an uptick in homelessness. 

President Joe Biden on Thursday ordered government health insurance markets to reopen for a special sign-up window, offering uninsured Americans a haven as the spread of COVID-19 remains dangerously high and vaccines aren’t yet widely available.

The mutated version of the virus, first identified in South Africa, was found in two cases in South Carolina. Public health officials said it’s almost certain that there are more infections that have not been identified yet. 

Located at the Lake County Fairgrounds, the drive-thru facility will initially be open three days a week and administer about 600 vaccinations per day, according to Gov. J.B. Pritzker. “The goal is to build that into a seven-day per week operation with expanded hours as supplies grow,” he said.

The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated existing inequities in Chicago and across the country. Check out our virtual discussion about COVID-19 with Hugo Balta, host of “Latino Voices,” and a panel of guests.

Since March, city inspectors have conducted more than 8,236 investigations and cited 417 businesses for violating COVID-19 regulations, officials said.

President Joe Biden signaled his increasing bullishness on the pace of vaccinations after signing an executive order to boost government purchases from U.S. manufacturers. 

It’s another benchmark in the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine: Chicago has entered phase 1B. But what does that mean? And how can you sign up to get a shot? We’ve got answers to some common questions.

It took less than a year for pharmaceutical companies to successfully develop vaccines for COVID-19. The unprecedented time frame has raised questions for some about the vaccine’s safety. We learn about the science behind the shots.

Eight more cases of a COVID-19 variant first discovered in the United Kingdom and believed to be more transmissible have been discovered in Chicago and suburban Cook County, state health officials announced Monday.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot vowed to redouble efforts to get the vaccine to those in neighborhoods hit hardest by the coronavirus pandemic by earmarking doses for those Black and Latino communities as the state begins the second phase of its vaccination effort.