Within days of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control approving vaccine courses for children six-months through 4 years old, area hospitals, pediatricians and health care centers are beginning to put those doses in children’s arms.

The West Rogers Park facility is increasing the size of its food pantry fourfold, doubling the size of its community space and creating a dedicated area for its Intensive Day Program that serves adults with mental health challenges.

Factors out of most people’s reach have caused everything from high gas prices to shortages of products like baby formula and tampons. But there is another shortage that we can do something about: it’s the supply of blood that hospitals and their patients depend on daily. 

People who menstruate are scrambling to find tampons and sanitary pads as manufacturers say securing the cotton and plastic used to make the products is volatile.

Roughly 18 million kids will now be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, but it remains to be seen how many will ultimately get the vaccines. Less than a third of children ages 5 to 11 have done so since vaccination opened up to them last November.

This weekend, many Latinos will come together to celebrate the men who hold a cherished place in their families. It may be a good opportunity to give them a nudge to see their doctor. 

Fuller Park is a small community area on the South Side of Chicago, located right off the Dan Ryan Expressway. Despite being considered one of the poorest neighborhoods in Chicago, community leaders have been investing in the neighborhood for years. 

U.S. regulators on Friday authorized the first COVID-19 shots for infants and preschoolers, paving the way for vaccinations to begin next week.

COVID-19 posed a high risk in Chicago and Cook County for 21 days, but neither state, county nor city officials imposed new restrictions designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Chicagoans should consider the CDC’s medium level of risk warning as “a yellow light of caution,” Dr. Allison Arwady has said.

Nine cases of monkeypox have been detected in Chicago while one case has been identified in DuPage County, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. 

Production for Abbott’s EleCare specialty formula has been suspended, but there is enough supply to meet demand until production is restarted, the company said. 

While the Chicago Department of Transportation encourages residents to submit complaints of blocked bike lanes to 311, “requests sent to 311 are not sent to Administrative Hearings for ticketing,” CDOT said in a statement.

The National Weather Service maintained an excessive heat warning through Wednesday evening for most of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, which have been dealing with the sticky humidity and soaring temperatures since Tuesday. 

The Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisers gave a thumbs-up to vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer for the littlest kids.

Chicago isn’t likely to break the 35-year-old record high of 99 degrees set for June 14 back in 1987, even though the heat index is expected to top 105 degrees. Which begs the question: What is the heat index?

COVID-19 has worsened what behavioral health leaders say was already a serious shortage of mental health care providers.