Stories by Leslie Hurtado

“It is much healthier to get more of that light in the morning than in the evening,” said Dr. Sabra Abbott, a sleep medicine specialist at Northwestern Medicine.

Pfizer Inc. said Friday that its experimental antiviral pill for COVID-19 cut rates of hospitalization and death by nearly 90% in high-risk adults, as the drugmaker joined the race for an easy-to-use medication to treat the coronavirus.

The House passed the measure 228-206 late Friday, prompting prolonged cheers from the relieved Democratic side of the chamber. Thirteen Republicans, mostly moderates, supported the legislation while six of Democrats’ farthest left members opposed it.

Following controversial remarks by McDonald’s CEO, a new campaign asks the company to do more than apologize. That story and more with Crain’s Chicago Business reporter A.D. Quig.

The Biden administration framed its vaccine mandate for private employers in life-and-death terms Monday in a legal filing that sought to get the requirement back on track after it was halted by a federal court.

Opponents of the measure are concerned that greenlighting sports betting lounges at Wrigley Field, United Center, Wintrust Arena, Solider Field and Guaranteed Rate Field would stunt the growth of a casino-resort in Chicago.

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner did not elaborate on his specific safety concerns voiced Friday at the Astroworld festival, an event founded by Travis Scott that was attended by some 50,000 people. His department has launched a criminal investigation into what went wrong.

Clearer pictures began to emerge Sunday of some of the eight people who died after fans at the Astroworld music festival in Houston suddenly surged toward the stage during a performance by rapper Travis Scott.

The bells will be clanging, but coins won’t necessarily be clinking as the Salvation Army kicks off its annual Red Kettle campaign Monday. With people carrying less cash, the Salvation Army has adjusted to accept more contactless payment methods in 2021.

A look at the disaster that killed eight people at a concert in Texas. Younger kids are vaccine eligible as a COVID-19 pill becomes available in the U.K. What the federal infrastructure bill could mean for Illinois.

The victims included a 16-year-old boy who was killed in Garfield Park on Saturday afternoon and a 36-year-old man who was fatally shot following a confrontation as he tried to park his car in his garage in Belmont Cragin.

The National Weather Service is encouraging folks to get out and enjoy what could be the last day to reach the mid- to upper-60s in 2021. 

In spite of Lightfoot’s solemn pledge to immediately go after the “blood money” earned by gangs who terrorize Chicagoans, the mayor has not publicly mentioned her so-called “Victims’ Justice Ordinance” since that City Hall news conference on Sept. 14.

Hedy Weiss reviews the Lyric Opera production of “The Magic Flute,” a Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert, and “Homecoming,” the latest entry in the CSO’s MusicNOW series.

Phil Turner, a former federal prosecutor and attorney in Chicago who isn’t involved in the case, said Binger is trying to show jurors that Rittenhouse didn’t know what he was doing and that they shouldn’t believe his self-defense claims.

City officials said Saturday they were in the early stages of investigating the pandemonium that unfolded Friday evening at Astroworld, a sold-out, two-day event in NRG Park with an estimated 50,000 people in attendance.

Some district leaders say offering vaccine clinics on campus is key to improving access and helping overcome hesitancy. Still, many school systems are choosing not to offer elementary schools as hosts for vaccination sites after some middle and high schools that offered shots received pushback.

The state invests $250 million in its latest public health crisis: gun violence. James “Big Cat” Williams on the latest in football and what’s next for the Bears. And the Black Harvest Film Festival opens.

Community organizations working to prevent gun violence will soon get a boost in funding from the state. Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed an executive order declaring gun violence a public health crisis and announced a plan to address it.

As the weather starts to turn chillier and the days grayer, many Chicagoans rely on coffee to bring them some daily sunshine. But the people who grow the beans around the world don’t always benefit from the wealth their product creates.

The 27th annual Black Harvest Film Festival kicked off Friday. After going fully virtual last year, the festival is back in-person at the Gene Siskel Film Center. Audiences can watch more than 30 films and documentaries and six short film series.

A new Netflix series on Colin Kaepernick’s life is causing a stir; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is not vaccinated after all; and on the field, the Chicago Bears prepare to tackle the Pittsburgh Steelers. We get into it with former Bears’ offensive lineman James “Big Cat” Williams.

As the holiday season nears and families across the country prepare to observe the traditions that make their celebrations special, the state of the global supply chain has been thrust into the spotlight.

Chicago’s racial makeup is often described as roughly one-third white, one-third Black and one-third Latino.  Now, alderpeople are battling over how to fairly reflect the city’s evolving racial makeup in how the borders of its 50 wards are drawn. 

The battle over redrawing ward boundaries. Disruptions in global supply chains. Knowing your health care rights. And cutting out the middleman when getting your morning cup of Joe.

The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights recently announced the launch of its Immigrant Health Academy. It will train community leaders in suburban areas with high immigrant populations to inform immigrants about their health care rights and correct misconceptions about access to care.