Good morning, Chicago.
Struggles at Loretto Hospital are just one sign of the way long-standing inequities in Chicago’s health care community are affecting COVID-19’s fifth surge, the Tribune’s Joe Mahr and Lisa Schencker report. While hospital executives have joined others in saying they want to close the gaps, that ambition can sometimes seem at odds with the competitive nature of the health care industry in the Chicago area.
Pharmacies in Illinois are beginning to receive Pfizer’s COVID drug, but supply remains scarce. Here’s what you need to know.
And starting Wednesday, you can order four free COVID tests from a federal government website.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.
COVID-19 tracker | More newsletters | Puzzles & Games | Daily horoscope | Ask Amy | Today’s eNewspaper edition
Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin formally announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor Monday, stressing his background as a former county prosecutor to focus on a tough-on-crime message the GOP is hoping will play well against Democrats this year.
Irvin, 51, the first Black mayor of the state’s second largest city, chose Martin Luther King Jr. Day to launch a campaign he and Republicans believe can appeal to Black voters who traditionally vote overwhelmingly Democratic. Irvin’s opponents immediately questioned the newest entrant’s Republican credentials, noting he voted in Democratic primaries in 2014, 2016 and 2020.
New law allows donation of unused medication in Illinois. But it could take some time to get started
A new law, which took effect Jan. 1, will allow individuals and institutions, such as long-term care facilities, to donate unused medication for other patients to use.
The Tribune’s Lisa Schencker examines how the new law will work.
Les Grobstein, Chicago’s sports encyclopedia and longtime radio host, dies at age 69
Les Grobstein, an overnight host for WSCR-AM670, died Sunday at the age of 69. According to a report from Chicago media reporter Robert Feder, Grobstein was discovered dead in his Elk Grove Village home. The cause of death was not immediately known.
Grobstein spent over 50 years reporting and commenting on the Chicago sports scene and was in press boxes in his final days.
That Rubi’s serves one of Chicago’s best tacos is no secret, Tribune critic Nick Kindelsperger says, but you used to have to wait until the weekly Maxwell Street Market to get your fix. Not anymore.
The 12-bedroom pillared Georgian-style mansion late investment manager Richard Driehaus owned on 40 acres in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, sold Friday for $36 million.
The sale price, to a buyer whose identity could not yet be determined, is the highest on record in Lake Geneva and the highest in the history of the state of Wisconsin for a single-family home. In Illinois, higher sale prices for single-family homes only have been accompanied by large amounts of land.
