Starting Wednesday, people visiting bars and restaurants in Illinois will be required to wear face coverings during all of their interactions with staff, whether they are sitting indoors or outdoors, according to a new policy.

A handful of Chicago residents became the first in the city to participate in a national clinical trial to test a potential COVID-19 vaccine as the University of Illinois at Chicago launched its study on Monday.

After expressing frustration at the slow pace of approval for coronavirus treatments, President Donald Trump announced Sunday the emergency authorization of convalescent plasma for COVID-19 patients.

State health officials reported nearly 1,900 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday and another six virus-related deaths — five of them among Cook County residents, including a woman and man in their 40s.

President Donald Trump on Saturday accused, without providing any evidence, the US Food and Drug Administration of deliberately delaying coronavirus vaccine trials, pressuring the man he had picked to head the agency.

As the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 2,208 new cases of the coronavirus across the state Friday, it said 20 counties, including two in the Chicago area, have reached a warning level for the virus.

As many as 215,000 more people than usual died in the U.S. during the first seven months of 2020. And half the dead were people of color — Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and, to a marked degree unrecognized until now, Asian Americans.

One in five U.S. nursing homes faced severe shortages of protective gear like N95 masks this summer even as the Trump administration pledged to help, according to a study released Thursday.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker hailed on Wednesday the decision by the Food and Drug Administration to grant emergency approval to a coronavirus test developed by University of Illinois researchers that uses saliva rather than a deep nasal swab.

With more than 170,000 coronavirus-related deaths so far reported in the U.S. in 2020, the virus is on pace to becoming the third leading cause of death this year, according to the National Safety Council.

City officials are putting the final touches on a plan to replace the lead service lines responsible for contaminating the tap water in thousands of Chicago homes, according to Department of Water Management Commissioner Randy Conner.

Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Department of Public Health, said the spread of the virus remains high among city residents between the ages of 18 and 29 as well as among Latino Chicagoans.

To help Illinois residents make informed decisions about travel, the Illinois Department of Public Health on Monday launched a COVID-19 travel map, which indicates states and countries with increased risk based on COVID-19 case rates.

Among the businesses shut down by officials for violating rules designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus was Barba Yianni Greek Tavern in Lincoln Square and Juanita’s Restaurant #2 in Clearing.

In a country that’s surpassed 5 million identified cases and 169,000 deaths, researchers don’t know why there appear to be so few outbreaks among the homeless. 

A Cook County woman in her 30s was among the 18 deaths reported Sunday by the Illinois Department of Public Health, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced new mitigation efforts in the Metro East region of the state.