St. Pat's parades off, General Assembly on hiatus
Pritzker pounds Trump administration on testing as Illinois reports six new cases of coronavirus, 25 total
There’ll be no St. Patrick’s Day parade and no dying of the river green in Chicago this year. (Flickr/Elwarren)
By Ted Cox
Chicago canceled its St. Patrick’s Day parades this weekend, and the General Assembly called off its legislative session next week in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
That news came Wednesday as the state announced six new cases of COVID-19, including the first in Lake County, as the state total increased to 25.
At a daily news briefing on the virus Wednesday afternoon at the Thompson Center in Chicago, Gov. Pritzker praised Mayor Lori Lightfoot for making a “tough call” on canceling the parades — both the main Chicago parade and the South Side Irish parade — as well as the traditional dying of the Chicago River green.
“I thank the mayor for making this tough call — the right call for the city of Chicago,” Pritzker said.
He was not as thankful for President Trump on the federal level, calling for the second day in a row for more test kits to be distributed, and blaming the bottleneck on a monopoly on testing enforced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Saying he has been “very vocal” on the issue, Pritzker said, “We’re not getting enough tests. We’re not getting enough test kits.” As a result, he added, “We’re not testing everybody who would like to be tested.”
Pritzker said Trump “is not taking this seriously,” citing his boastful appearance at the CDC last week while wearing a red reelection campaign hat, and pointedly added, “People in his administration are calling this a hoax.” He lashed out at “behavior on the federal-government level that is unacceptable to me.”
Illinois, however, is not treating the spread of COVID-19 as a hoax. The General Assembly announced it would cancel next week’s session, with the decision to reconvene to be reconsidered week to week after that. Pritzker cited new CDC guidelines on meetings of more than 250 people, and said he has been in touch with local sports franchises and professional leagues about the possibility of calling off game attendance.
“We’re considering all options here,” Pritzker said. “It’s on all of us to minimize the spread and keep Illinois healthy. … Make prudent decisions.”
Pritzker said he might consider taking executive action on economic tools to address the fallout from the outbreak, including expanded unemployment benefits and paid sick leave. “Waiting for action by the legislature is perhaps waiting too long,” he said.
Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, announced six new cases Wednesday, to bring the state total to 25, all but three of them in Chicago and Cook County. The others are in Kane and McHenry counties, announced Tuesday, and now Lake County. She added that all patients who haven’t been cured and released are in isolation, and that one is considered in serious medical condition.
The department has created a COVID-19 webpage to trace testing results and other public health alerts and advice.
The governor and health officials continue to say the disease is much like influenza, but far more lethal, and that preventive measures are the same as for fighting off the flu:
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
Cover your cough or sneeze.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
Clean often-touched surfaces frequently.
Maintain social distance (3 feet) between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.
Avoid visiting long-term-care facilities, such as nursing homes, especially if you’re sick.
Stay home if you do not feel well.
Plan a safe visit to the doctor if you experience any symptoms, and call your doctor first. Pritzker also recommended calling an emergency room in advance of seeking care.