“COVID-19 is now the third leading cause of death in Illinois, behind heart disease and cancer,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday as state health officials reported 8,922 new COVID-19 cases and 140 virus-related deaths.

The announcement by the Food and Drug Administration represents an important step in U.S. efforts to expand testing options for COVID-19 beyond health care facilities and testing sites. 

Acknowledging that demand for COVID-19 tests has grown exponentially during a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Chicago officials announced Wednesday that the city will open a new testing site at Midway Airport.

The COVID-19 pandemic means this year’s holiday season will be like no other. Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at UChicago Medicine, gives advice on how to safely navigate the holidays.

Facing “exponential growth” in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, Illinois will soon begin operating under tighter restrictions designed to stop the spread of the virus — and avoid another stay-at-home order, the governor said.

Chicagoans should not travel to celebrate Thanksgiving with friends and family, the city’s top doctor said Tuesday, warning that the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic is getting worse in Chicago.

Five Cook County Circuit Court judges and 37 more employees working under the office of Chief Judge Timothy Evans have tested positive for COVID-19 thus far this month.

A second experimental COVID-19 vaccine — this one from Moderna Inc. — yielded extraordinarily strong early results Monday, another badly needed dose of hope as the pandemic enters a terrible new phase.

With coronavirus infections and hospitalizations on the rise, officials are again urging residents to do their part in fighting the virus as health care workers face a COVID-19 crisis.

The Cook County Sheriff’s Office announced that beginning Monday, it will temporarily halt visits at the jail as Chicago and Cook County continue dealing with a second surge of COVID-19.

For the 10th consecutive day, public health officials reported more than 10,000 new COVID-19 infections in Illinois within a 24-hour period. 

U.S. health officials are taking a new tack to encourage Americans to wear masks: They’re emphasizing recent research that a mask protects the person who wears it.

Coronavirus cases soar. Local contenders for Biden’s Cabinet. President Trump makes unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud. Mayor Lightfoot threatens aldermen. A winner in a close congressional race.

In the midst of a surge in COVID-19 cases, health officials are now warning Chicagoans about possible exposure to another infectious disease.

Illinois on Friday set a new record for the most COVID-19 cases reported in a 24-hour period, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced the state’s ban on evictions caused by the pandemic would be extended until Dec. 16.

A 25-minute drive southwest of the Loop, the West Lawn community is home to many essential workers and has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 in the city.