Local Health Updates

This post covers availability of the COVID vaccine for children and other recent local health news. A recent uptick of COVID cases on campus is covered under the Campus News post on the local Cheat Sheet here.

COVID vaccines for children are becoming available locally. From the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District's facebook post on the subject:

Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Is Now Available for Children

Community vaccination clinics available by appointment for children aged 5-11

CHAMPAIGN, IL – The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD), in partnership with Carle Health, OSF HealthCare, Christie Clinic, Promise Healthcare, and the University of Illinois Urban-Champaign, are organizing community clinics for va Pfizer COVID-19 cunation for children aged 5-11 years.

According to a press release from the US Food and Drug Administration. U.S. (FDA), “In the USA. U.S. , COVID-19 cases in children aged 5 to 11 make up 39% of cases in people under 18 years old. According to the CDC, approximately 8,300 cases of COVID-19 in children aged 5 to 11 resulted in hospitalization. As of October 17, there have been 691 COVID-19 deaths reported in the U.S. U.S. in people under the age of 18, with 146 deaths in the age group of 5-11 years.

The Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11 years old is administered as a two-dose series, 3 weeks apart, but is a lower dose (10 micrograms) than that used for people aged 12 or older. (30 micrograms).

iHotel & Conference Center – 111 St. Mary’s Road, Champaign

• No walk ins allowed; schedule online at: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B054CA8A82CA5F94-511

• Friday, November 5 from 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

• Saturday, November 6 from 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Kohl’s Plaza – 1901 N. Market Street, Champaign

• Appointments will be available soon via MyCarle and Carle.org

 Carle community vaccination clinics will feature many of the care providers in the Carle Pediatric and Family Medicine areas or are especially trained to administer the vaccine to children.

• Starting this Saturday, weekends of November:

Saturdays, 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

o Domingos, 8:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

• Vaccine appointments will be available at primary medical care locations at a later date.

...

OSF HealthCare:

• Appointments will be available at all primary medical care offices and can be scheduled via osfhealthcare.org/vaccine

 .

Pharmacies:

• Visit www.vaccinefinder.org

 for appointments available at local pharmacies.

Keep in mind that additional vaccination options may be available through the child's school(a).

You can find additional information about COVID-19 vaccines at: https://www.c-uphd.org/covid-vaccinations.html

Smile Politely had a quick list for vaccine for children here. More from the News-Gazette this week on the health department, schools, and others offering the vaccine:

Carle Health is also offering vaccine appointments for kids from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sundays this weekend and every weekend next month at its location at Kohl’s Plaza, 1901 N. Market St., C. Those can be made through the MyCarle patient portal and at Carle.org.

Carle’s clinic will be staffed by pediatric and family-medicine providers trained to administer vaccines to children. It will also be offering appointments to get kids vaccinated at primary-care locations at a later date.

OSF HealthCare is also offering vaccine appointments through primary-care offices at osfhealthcare.org/vaccine.

More at that full article here. Illinois Newsroom had an article previewing the children's vaccine news earlier in October here.

Illinois Newsroom had coverage of absences during the pandemic with links to the latest State "report cards" that allows folks to look up individual schools and district information. Excerpt:

Learning did slow last year during pandemic school – especially for the state’s most vulnerable students...

“We need to recognize that for our Black and Hispanic children, remote learning was not very effective, particularly for English learners. When they are in their community environment, or they’re in their home, they may or may not be utilizing English as much as they would have if they were in a school setting,” says State Superintendent of Education Carmen Ayala.

English and math proficiency rates did decrease across all grade levels for Illinois students as a whole, according to preliminary testing data from the spring.

The differences between 2019 and 2021 were starkest among young English learners. For third through fifth grade English learners, sometimes half as many students were at grade level as before the pandemic.

Full article here. The State's annual report card website link is here.

Carle is splitting from Aetna's Medicare insurance coverage. From Illinois Newsroom:

Medicare is a federal insurance program for those ages 65 and up or who have certain disabilities. Many Medicare recipients choose to supplement with private insurance, like Aetna, to cover prescription drugs or lower their out-of-pocket cost.

[Bridget McGill, an Urbana resident,] received a letter in the mail from Aetna about two weeks ago informing her that the company’s Medicare Advantage will no longer be accepted at Carle Foundation Hospital. This means that the hospital will go out of the company’s network and her costs for hospital and doctor’s visits will go up.

That full article here. Carle was also in the news for its collaboration with the University on cognitive research with new MRI technology. More on that from the Daily Illini here.

Urbana Updates: City Council and News

This post includes a preview of upcoming Urbana government meetings, a vote on a resolution committing the City of Urbana to end structural racism, an overview of the last City Council Committee of the Whole meeting, and some other Urbana related news.

Tomorrow's February 8th Urbana City Council meeting (agenda) will likely be voting to approve the Alderwoman Shirese Hursey's resolution to commit the City to end structural racism and achieve racial equity. There are also a few appointments on the agenda, including an interim public works director and a FOIA officer. 

Prior to the City Council meeting there will be the monthly Cunningham Township meeting (agenda here). An intergovernmental agreement with the school district will be voted on to fill the gap in emergency shelter for student families experiencing homelessness (text of resolution).

Other Urbana News:

• The local NAACP branch and ACLU chapter are working on language for a new Use of Force policy for the Urbana Police Department.
• Urbana is looking for applications and nominations for the next Poet Laureate: Smile Politely had an interview with the current Poet Laureate Ashanti Files. Calls for nominations are in these Smile Politely links to the notice and update. The City's Poet Laureate page is available here and the nomination / application form is available here.
• The Urbana Free Library's efforts to serve the community during the pandemic were highlighted in Smile Politely. 
• WCIA had coverage of the proposed resolution on structural racism that also highlighted an initiative by the Champaign County Historical Archives for "chronicling racial and social justice movements in Champaign County."
• The lottery for the municipal ballot order was held in Urbana this week.
• The News-Gazette had an update on Urbana's Enterprise Zone which tallied new project cost heights and expects a busy 2021.

City Council Committee of the Whole Meeting 2/1:

Most of the public comments at the COW meeting (agenda, video) revolved around support of the proposed resolution committing to end structural racism, but also to demand substantive action towards that goal. Speakers included local ACLU chapter president Carol Leff and Cunningham Township Supervisor Danielle Cynoweth as well as several City Council/Township Board election challengers. 

Mayor Marlin read a proclamation for Black History Month and gave updates on the area COVID situation. Updates included the news that cases of one of the more contagious variants have been detected locally and updates on the health district's vaccination efforts.

It was pointed out that C-UPHD is still the best contact for questions and information on vaccinations. Alderman Brown noted the continued importance of social distancing and masks as there are still many vulnerable people waiting to be vaccinated in the months ahead.

The presentation and discussion of the resolution on structural racism began around the 1:24 mark in the video (jump to link). There appeared to be broad support for the resolution. The resolution passed with only some grammatical edits suggested for the final resolution to be voted on at the next City Council meeting. The News-Gazette had coverage of the meeting and the discussion:

The four-page resolution calls out the city for a history of Jim Crow laws, White supremacy, segregation and racial oppression.

“It’s an important first step,” said Ward 3 Alderwoman Shirese Hursey, who co-sponsored the resolution.

Full article available here. 

Council communication at the end of the meeting included some concerns and questions about leniency for ticketing vehicles while the pandemic continues and continuing utility shut offs mentioned in public comments. City Administrator Carol Mitten said she would look into and follow up on the concern. 

Local Homelessness and Cold Weather

With some extremely cold winter coming in the days ahead, we'll be highlighting some local information on warming centers and recent news on housing and homelessness today. WAND had area information on warming centers:

The Phoenix Daytime Drop-In Center

Location: 70 E. Washington St., Champaign (the former TIMES Center)

Contact: 217-819-4569

Website: cuathome.us

Tuesday-Friday Noon- 5 p.m. (Additional hours added when daytime "feels like" temperature falls below 10 degress)

Salvation Army Stepping Stone Program and Daytime Warming Center

Location: 2212 N. Market St., Champaign

Weekdays 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. 

Other Champaign-Urbana options 

The Phoenix, public buildings such as libraries, municipal (city, state and federal) buildings are available during normal business hours 

More details on other area counties at the full article. WICS also had additional information on the C-U at Home warming center:

C-U at Home is preparing to open up both overnight emergency hours and daytime emergency warming hours this upcoming weekend as cold weather is expected to come through the area.

The shelter is putting extra staff to work this weekend to make sure that the homeless and those in need have a place to rest overnight and stay warm away from harsh conditions on the way...

The shelter is also working to make sure they have a place that is ready for a larger capacity, and a place to rest that is safe from COVID-19, as well.

That full article here. More information on C-U at Home and the Phoenix Center Drop-In Center at their website here. 

C-U at Home has also been in the news recently for it's One Winter Night event as well as providing an alternative to contacting police for some issues. From WCIA yesterday:

They choose that date every year because it’s typically one of the coldest nights. That’s exactly what homeless people have to deal with night after night. That’s why people need to support C-U at Home. They work with people in these exact situations to help connect them to resources, including a warm place to stay.

One way they do that is through a 24-hour hotline. Anyone can call it if they are having trouble with someone who may be homeless, but they don’t want to go as far as calling police...

That hotline also helps alleviate the burden on the police department. As we know, officers are busy. They don’t always have time to help homeless people with everything they need. C-U at Home employees also help de-escalate situations. They say sometimes people just need someone to talk to.

That full article available here. More on the One Winter Night Event at its webpage here. C-U at Home lists additional local resources and contact information on their website here for anyone needing additional services or going through a difficult time.

Other recent housing news:

City of Champaign using vacant lots and working with local organizations to provide "Mini Homes" for people who need shelter options. From the News-Gazette earlier this week:

“We’ve been working with a local ministry, Restoration Urban Ministries, for the last several years, and in 2014, the Rev. (Ervin T.) Williams came to us with the idea about doing mini homes in order to meet some of the permanent housing needs of our friends without addresses,” [John Ruffin, City of Champaign Neighborhood Coordinator] said.

The mini homes fit well on some of the smaller or oddly shaped vacant lots, Ruffin said, and two lots were donated to Restoration Urban Ministries.

“They were able to complete a mini home on one of the lots,” Ruffin said, and the other one was donated to First Mennonite Church in partnership with CU at Home.

Full News-Gazette article here. Additional coverage from WICS with a short video segment here.

Homeless families attending area schools came up in the Unit 4 Board of Education meeting last month. It was noted that there are at least 129 homeless families attending just Unit 4 schools. The District is struggling to ensure they have access to education when so much is done via remote learning during the pandemic. That full overview of Unit 4 meetings in January here. WCIA noted that meal programs are still continuing for families struggling with meal options during the pandemic:

“We have a lot of unanswered questions with the pandemic right now, but the one thing we know for sure is kids are still gonna need access to those nutritious meals,” said Tim Murphy, ISBE Nutrition Department principal consultant. The responsibility of serving them falls on the shoulders of people working in school districts...

Despite those challenges, many like Food Services Coordinator Linda Jones are rising to the occasion.

“We’re basically taking what we typically do in a 5-day school week, we’re doing it in one day.”

Food Service Director Laura Dees said the Champaign School District is operating through its summer meals program. It was extended because of COVID-19.

That full WCIA article and video segment here. Smile Politely also highlighted a recent announcement that some of those meal boxes will feature food from local Black-owned businesses during Black History Month.

There was also coverage of a local meal program in today's News-Gazette available at their eEdition here (subscription).

Men, women and families in the C-U at Home transitional program are receiving hot meals from Champaign’s Human Kinetics employees as a way to give back to the community.

Human Kinetics CEO Skip Maier said the idea for the HK Café in the Community program came about last spring, after many employees “were bothered and disturbed by the events after the killing of George Floyd (in Minneapolis) and the civil unrest that followed.”

Full article available here.

A recent candidate event also focused on the topic of eradicating homelessness. More information on that in a previous Cheat Sheet post here.

And finally, it has come up in various Q&A events and presentations with the C-UPHD director Julie Pryde that vaccination outreach to the homeless through various shelters, service providers, and trusted community members is part of their operations to ensure that homeless and other vulnerable populations are able to be vaccinated.

COVID News Roundup 1/26

There has been a mountain of news and updates since our last COVID update post a week ago. That Cheat Sheet post highlighted that officials were announcing sustained reductions in cases, hospitalizations and thus reduced mitigations. Soon after that, Region 6, including Champaign County, returned to Phase 4 guidance without additional mitigation. From the News-Gazette:

Region 6 has moved out of the state’s Tier 1 COVID-19 mitigation restrictions to the less restrictive Phase 4.

The Illinois Department of Public Health announced the change Thursday morning for the 21-county region that includes Champaign, Douglas, Ford, Piatt and Vermilion counties.

The change was based on improving COVID-19 metrics for the region, including a test-positivity rate of 6.5 percent for three consecutive days, plus staffed intensive care unit bed capacity of 20 percent or more for three consecutive days and no sustained increase in COVID-19 patients in the hospital for seven out of 10 days.

That full article here. The previous Cheat Sheet post had a description and links for the recovery Phases and mitigation Tiers to get back on track after outbreaks. For additional local data and vaccine information check out the C-UPHD coronavirus data page and vaccination dashboard. The return to Phase 4 has meant less restrictions on everything from indoor dining to libraries to sports. Here are just some of the stories on loosening restrictions in the area:

• Youth Sports opening back up from the News-Gazette. There was also an earlier article prior to the decision explaining the metrics and the why.
• Impacts of Phase 4 on campus from the Daily Illini.
• The University Chancellor is pleading with students to adhere to the remaining safety guidance after some concerns were raised by long lines. Coverage by WCIA here. The student infection rate is still far lower than the general community at this time with the News-Gazette reporting its "seven-day positivity rate held at 0.3 percent."
• Champaign Park District and Urbana Park District resuming some indoor activities, reported by Smile Politely.
• Public libraries in Champaign and Urbana have limited openings as reported by the News-Gazette.

There were also some updates on vaccinations (C-UPHD vaccination dashboard):

• Some students and teachers at Unit 4 are able to start signing up for vaccinations according to the News-Gazette today. WCIA had more coverage here.
• WICS had an article on the overwhelming demand in Champaign County and surrounding areas.
• Illinois Newsroom had coverage about building trust with agricultural workers and migrant communities with outreach on the vaccine.
• The Pantagraph had coverage on vaccine delays and nursing homes.
• WICS also had updates on a new Illinois State portal on COVID vaccination information.
• The Daily Illini took a look at the possible student vaccination timeline.
• The Daily Illini also had an overview of the local vaccination push in Champaign County.

Unfortunately as we race to get as many people as possible vaccinated and get this pandemic under control, the new more contagious variant threatens to do more damage. WAND had coverage about more confirmed cases of the virus variant spreading in Illinois. The News-Gazette today laid out specific concerns with the University and the new variant possibly coming here.

Other COVID-19 related updates:

• There is now a memorial established by the Unitarian Universalist church for those lost to the pandemic locally. Reporting from WICS. 
• The IFT teachers union has announced a COVID tracker on its website according to WICS.
• The University of Illinois Board of Trustees says it is still waiting on FDA approval for expanding its testing to more people according to the News-Gazette.
• WCIA had coverage on continued visitor restrictions at local hospitals.
• WCIA and WAND had coverage on the University's "Party Patrol" to help ensure adherence to pandemic guidance.
• The University's "Mom's Weekend" in-person activities were canceled, also from WICS.
• The Daily Illini had an overview of local COVID trends while students were gone.
• There was coverage on how COVID is still impacting "Restaurant Week" events locally in the Daily Illini and WCIA.

It was a busy week for local pandemic news. By the time you read this, there will likely be more news and updates!

COVID Updates: Tier 1 Mitigation

News broke yesterday that Region 6 has jumped back to Tier 1 mitigation status, which includes Champaign County and of course Champaign-Urbana. This follows recent news of the more infectious UK strain of the coronavirus being detected in Illinois (the vaccine appears effective against this variant). First the good news from WAND last night:

Central Illinois regions have moved to lower COVID-19 mitigation levels after the state announced a hospital staffing program and changed its mitigation metrics. 

Region 6, which includes the east half of central Illinois, has met the metrics to move to the Tier 1 mitigation level. Region 3, or the west half of central Illinois, will have even fewer restrictions as it moves to Phase 4 of the original Restore Illinois plan. Both regions were previously under Tier 3, which is the strongest mitigation level possible. 

The changes significantly reduce restrictions to businesses and will allow bars and restaurants to reopen in central Illinois. Tier 1 allows limited indoor service at the lesser of 25 percent capacity or 25 people in the room. Indoor tables can't exceed four people under Tier 1 and indoor service is suspended for business that don't serve food. 

Full article with more regional details here. The Illinois Department of Public Health mitigation page explains what this means in far more detail here. The local situation involved a longer trend of slowly declining cases and other indicators. From the News-Gazette website last night:

The new rules take effect immediately, IDPH spokeswoman Melaney Arnold told The News-Gazette.

It was a close call Monday. Region 6's hospitalization number dropped by just one, to 180, giving it the required seven days of decline in a 10-day period.

The other metric the region needed to go its way — a seven-day positivity rate under 8 percent — wasn't as close. Region 6's rate fell from 7.0 to 6.7 percent Monday, its seventh straight day in decline...

In reaching Tier 1, Region 6 isn't all the way back to where it was before Nov. 20, when Gov. J.B. Pritzker placed all 11 regions in Tier 3. The last remaining step is to move from Tier 1 to Phase 4.

Full article here with more details and local data. If you're confused, you're not alone. The State of Illinois' Coronavirus Response website breaks down what they mean by each phase of the recovery (e.g. Phase 4 here). The more helpful link on the right hand side is Mitigation, which explains the mitigation tiers to fight a resurgence of COVID-19 during this process. In other words, if a region starts getting a lot of new cases, they could end up in one of the tiers of mitigation before getting back on track. They have a simplified chart to help:

There's a full breakdown and explanation of the Illinois tier system here. People didn't want a "one size fits all" system, so probably the best thing you can do is check for updates from your local health department to know what the current status and rules are: Champaign-Urbana Public Health Department COVID-19 dashboard.

The C-UPHD Administrator also had an update yesterday on data on with Elizabeth Hess on Urbana Public Television and available on YouTube here. All of this comes on the heals of news a few days ago that the UK variant of the coronavirus had been detected in Illinois. From the IDPH website:

The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) and Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced the first case in Illinois of the SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.7 first identified in the United Kingdom. The case was identified by the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine through sequencing analysis of a specimen from bio-banked samples of COVID-19 positive tests.

The new strain was first identified in the United States about two weeks ago in Colorado and has since been identified in several other states. Evidence suggests that this variant can spread more easily than most currently-circulating strains of COVID-19, but there is no evidence that the new strain affects the sensitivity of diagnostic tests or that it causes more severe illness or increased risk of death. In addition, data suggest current vaccines will be effective and safe in providing protection against the variant. 

“This news isn’t surprising and doesn’t change our guidance around COVID-19. We must double down on the recommended safety strategies we know help stop the spread of this virus,” said CDPH Commissioner Allison Arwady, M.D. “In order to protect Chicago, please continue to wear a mask, practice social distancing, wash your hands often, do not have outside guests in your home, and get vaccinated when it is your turn.”  

Full news release here. And since nothing about this pandemic can ever be simple, it's probably worth noting Dr. Ezike's warning in the St. Louis Dispatch:

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said Friday that the discovery of the U.K. variant in the state means residents should take extra precautions in the weeks ahead. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Friday modeled that it could become the predominant variant in the U.S. in the early spring. Other variants have been identified here and in South Africa, Nigeria, Brazil and Japan.

“If we do not continue to wear our masks, watch our distance, and avoid gatherings, this new variant could sweep across the state as it swept across the U.K.,” Ezike said. “That would lead us back to a place that we don’t want to go.”

That full article here, though it is mostly on Missouri's coronavirus situation. What the future holds in Illinois may come down to whether the impact of more infectious variants of the virus outrace our vaccination efforts. It's worth reiterating from the IDPH news release that, "data suggest current vaccines will be effective and safe in providing protection against the variant."

For other COVID-19 Updates this week, see yesterday's Cheat Sheet post here.

Coronavirus Updates 8/4

This post has a collection of coronavirus updates including the trends locally, regionally, at the State and federal level. At the end is also a list of tentative school reopening news links as well.

The local and regional coronavirus news is still better than many parts of the State of Illinois and the country in general. There was an update from the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (latest COVID information from C-UPHD here) in an interview with Elizabeth Hess on Urbana Public Television yesterday and available on YouTube here:

Illinois Newsroom had additional coverage on C-UPHD guidance last week here. Unfortunately the bad news is our local cases and hospitalizations are up recently. More details available from the News-Gazette website here and reporter Ben Zigterman's twitter feed here. Here's a snip of the chart's he posted today:

The News-Gazette had a more detailed local breakdown for the area with some recent remarks from the Governor today here.

Looking at the regions of Illinois for coronavirus data, we're still doing better than other regions by test positivity. This bug doesn't respect borders, so it depends entirely on people on whether the it moves from place to place, however. Illinois government and politics reporter Hannah Meisel has regular updates on her twitter page here:

The national numbers are disheartening after many were expecting the daily deaths to plateau at a low of roughly 500 per day, which is still pretty terrible compared to many of other Western industrialized nations at this point in their response. Unfortunately that plateau came and went and we have gone back up to roughly a thousand American deaths every day and rising. Where we go from here is completely dependent on public behavior when it comes to mitigation policies. More at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation here. This chart is from last week, so expect an updated projection later this week based on the latest numbers:

A lot of folks locally are concerned about schools reopening. The C-UPHD put out its guidance for school openings last month (Smile Politely had a brief overview and links here). More recent updates on school openings here:

• Daily Illini on UIUC summer athletic testing and infections.
• The Champaign Federation of Teachers statement opposing the Unit 4 reopening framework (available in full here).
• UIUC to require coronavirus test to enter buildings from today's News-Gazette.
• UIUC to shift most classwork to online and no return to classrooms after Thanksgiving break.
• Chambana Mom's had a recent overview of the Urbana reopening plans here.
• The News-Gazette had an overview of Parkland's reopening plan with most classes online and mask requirements here.

With rising cases and the future difficult to predict, it's hard to say how these plans will change over time, if reopenings will go on as planned or if they'll face sudden cancellations like the Major League Baseball season right out of the gate. Hopefully this post gives readers some helpful links to stay updated on the various numbers they may be interested in. As always the official County numbers are available from the C-UPHD website here and regular updates are posted on their facebook account here. 

Unit 4 Updates

As we approach the Fall semester, there are still more questions than answers about what that's going to look like for K-12 students, including who will be able to attend in person or remotely. This week's Unit 4 Board of Education meeting (meeting agendas available here, videos here) was several hours long and mostly dealt with district's preliminary reopening draft plan. The reopening subject started in the second video at about the 10 minute mark here.

Public comments starts at the 1 hour and 40 minute mark of the same video and continues into the third video here. Community members wanting to participate in public comments had to wait over three hours to speak due to an agenda change that moved public comments from the beginning of the meeting to the end. The PTA let the public know about the agenda change before the meeting on facebook here. The public portion of the meeting was delayed by roughly a half-hour as the closed Executive Session ran longer than usual as well.

All three speakers were strictly cut off after three minutes by a timer going off and the microphone immediately going silent. Speakers included a local epidemiologist, a district bus driver, and a parent with kids from pre-K to High School. All had serious concerns with the reopening plan. After that board members took turns reading the numerous emailed public comments sent to the board.

The News-Gazette had an overview yesterday:

At the beginning of the year, the district will likely restrict eligibility for in-person instruction to students with Individualized Education Programs and 504 Plans, English Language Learners, and students who qualify for free and reduced lunch...

Zola said that would make just over half of kindergarten through fifth-grade students eligible for in-person learning. She did not have data on the number of middle and high school students who would be eligible for an in-person slot...

The remaining students would participate in the district’s Virtual Academy, a wholly separate online school not affiliated with any campus.

That full article here. A slightly longer followup overview was also posted on the N-G website here. An even more comprehensive overview is available from Illinois Newsroom here. This morning there was yet another followup article on the front page of the eEdition here (subscription). Excerpt:

The reopening plan put forth by the Champaign school district at Monday’s board meeting was only a starting point, Superintendent Susan Zola said.

The board decided that the goal of 18 students per classroom was too much, so the district is amending its plans to reduce the number of kids attending in person to those who truly need it...

Which teachers will teach students in school and which will work for the remote academy is still up in the air. What’s certain, though, is that school will be far different from normal this fall.

There was also a brief statement from the Superintendent on the Unit 4 website yesterday here assuring the public that the numerous safety concerns are being taken seriously as they adapt the preliminary plan.

Overall a lot of the concerns raised by both board members and the public went unanswered at this meeting, which focused almost entirely on giving direction and highlighting those concerns to the Superintendent and staff working on the reopening plan. Concerns about safety precautions and protocols for positive infections still appear up in the air as the semester quickly approaches.

Our community still has maintained a low infection rate and strong hospital capacity at this point in the pandemic, even as the rest of the nation already faces a second spike in cases during what is still the first wave of infections in the United States.

Coronavirus Updates 6/5

It was announced that the daily flyer / announcement updates (see 6/3 informational flyer here) will become a weekly update on Wednesdays. The website will still have daily updated coronavirus information here. Public testing sites like the one at Marketplace Mall will also be open to everyone now, regardless of whether they have symptoms or other factor. WAND had more on the opening of testing to all here.

There was a meeting of the Joint Information Center with some questions from the media after the local updates from C-U Public Health District administrator Julie Pryde and City of Champaign Mayor Deb Feinen. The video of that meeting is available here. Previous videos are available at the C-UPHD website at this link and under the heading "Champaign County Joint Information Center Public Outreach Videos" near the bottom of the page.

A highlight from the questions was an explanation about people who attended the protests and the need to get tested. Administrator Pryde explained how long one should wait to get tested after a possible exposure. The way this infection takes hold and the way PCR tests work, at least 4 days is probably good to avoid a higher chance of a false negative. She reminded listeners that the testing is a tool, not a certainty, however. She encouraged vigilance and safe distancing as in some cases it can take longer (e.g. 14 days).

Mayor Feinen explained her latest Executive Order and how it expanded additional hours for private spaces that would apply to certain businesses. The City is looking to expand outdoor seating options next week. While Urbana is adding some more public music options this week, that's something Champaign isn't doing yet, but also considering.

WAND had an article with an overview of the changes from the State's Phase 2 to Phase 3 with a lot of additional details here. A snippet with a basic overview of Phase 2 and Phase 3 from the public chart:

 

WCCU had an article yesterday specifically looking at Phase 3 guidance for Illinois schools and the very different setting kids will be entering when they return to classes. There was a link to the full guidance from the Illinois State Board of Education here.

The News-Gazette's latest update today suggests signs that we could be moving to phase 4 in the central region if outbreaks and cases can be kept under control and within our regional hospital capacities:

To advance to Phase 4 of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s five-phase Restore Illinois plan three weeks from now, regions will have to hit the same metrics that they did to move on to Phase 3 last week.

So far, so good for the central region, which includes Champaign, Douglas, Ford, Piatt and Vermilion counties.

More on that at the full article with today's Champaign County updated numbers (including 4 new cases for a cumulative total of 675). WCCU had a brief overview of the County numbers today here. More data from the C-UPHD website here.

I missed the June 1st Board of Health special meeting and update mentioned in my last coronavirus update that covered the previous May meeting. I don't have any additional details on that yet.

A few other recent highlights:

Smile Politely had a quick blurb about a COVID-19 Relief Fund grant and a link to additional information here.

WCIA had an article about the Housing Authority of Champaign County's Youthbuild program providing care packages to seniors as part of COVID-19 assistance.

Unit 4's summer food program is still going on this summer. More details on that from WCIA here.

March / April City of Champaign Updates

I have to admit that it was more than a little surreal to go back over the City Council meeting videos for the City of Champaign. The previous coverage on the local Cheat Sheet left off at the March 5th City Council meeting (available here). It was a pretty typical local government meeting, though it did touch upon some concerns about preparedness for the coronavirus:

The City Manager had a statement about preparedness for the coronavirus here. She explains the intergovernmental Regional Emergency Coordination Group facilitated by the Champaign County Emergency Management Agency. She explained that municipal and public safety members had met that afternoon in their policy group to discuss the coronavirus situation and preparing for the possibility of local cases soon. There will be weekly meetings on the subject led by Champaign-Urbana Public Health District addressing needs of informing the public.

Full post here. This Cheat Sheet post has overviews of the City of Champaign meetings for the rest of March and April, including some highlights of the coronavirus impact.


Rest of March:

The last normal meeting occurred on March 10th (video, agenda) and was a Study Session meeting. It had presentations on the the Bristol Place project and an overview of the Champaign Police Department. The bulk of the meeting looked at the Police Department and the need for more officers. Concerns were raised about job fairs in the spring possibly getting interrupted by the coronavirus and effects it may have on recruitment.

The next day the local newspaper, the News-Gazette, was reporting that the University was preparing for the possibility of students having to finish the semester online after Spring Break. The front page also had an article about hygiene product shortages and a picture of empty toilet paper shelves. Page A6 noted the first confirmed case outside of Cook County. By that evening the online classes article that had started in print, "While it's business as usual for now..." had been updated on the website that in person classes had been canceled.

The shock to sports fans came with the NBA cancelling the rest of its season, the NCAA canceling fans in the stadiums, and then March Madness getting canceled altogether. Beyond disappointed fans, however, this reflected an immense amount of money being lost out of safety concerns. It raised serious questions about just how much danger the nation was in and what the economic impact would be if investors were considering these lost revenues necessary.

WCIA noted on March 12th that the previous 24 hours had transformed Champaign County's economy.

Efforts to stop the spread of Coronavirus have put a halt on travel plans, creating a whirlwind of uncertainty surrounding anticipated revenue. Visit Champaign County’s President Jayne Deluce says, “If you look at events like U of I Mom’s Weekend that’s cancelled, our hotels, restaurants, caterers, and retailers won’t rebound from that one weekend.” She says Mom’s Weekend typically brings in several million dollars. “We’re going to have a huge economic downfall from just that sole event, because that is a sold out weekend for our hotels,” says Deluce.

That full article here.

On March 13th the City of Champaign held a Special Emergency Meeting (video, agenda) to pass an Emergency Order that would trigger the broad powers of the mayor under State statutes and city ordinances. The broad language of the ordinance caused a great deal of local concern that was raised and addressed during the meeting. From News-Gazette's March 14th eEdition (subscription):

City attorney Fred Stavins noted that the emergency ordinance doesn’t compel any particular actions, which would need to be approved by the city council at its next meeting.

“The ordinance contemplates a wide range of emergency situations,” he said. “Whether any of these steps will be necessary, other than the cancellation of some meetings and the necessity to deal with personnel issues, including work-at-home issues, and the ability to respond to the needs of our fire and police departments, is not completely known at this time.”

...

The expansive powers in the ordinance spread quickly online, with the gun-seizure clause leading the lobbying arm of the National Rifle Association to issue a “National Alert.”

That full article here. The News-Gazette had a followup article on the City Council's attempt to address concerns about the Emergency Order in a statement later that same day. Excerpt:

Following a raft of criticism apparently generated by a response from the lobbying arm of the National Rifle Association to Friday’s approval of the emergency ordinance, the city put out a statement Saturday clarifying the intent...

The statement said the municipal code has been in place for more than 50 years and was last updated in 2006 to mirror a state statute that gives similar powers to the governor when he or she issues a disaster declaration, as Gov. J.B. Pritzker did on Monday.

Several communities in Illinois and other states have similar language about emergency powers.

That full article here. The City's statement is available here. The remaining March City Council meetings on the calendar were canceled.


April Meetings:

The next City Council meeting on April 7th (video, agenda) was done remotely with the Zoom app and new protocols for public participation submitted by web comment or dropbox. Comments received before 5pm would be considered "Communications" and put into the record, while those after 5pm would be considered audience participation and read aloud by Council Member / Deputy Mayor Tom Bruno. The updated remote meeting rules have been included with meeting agendas. Here is the most recent wording from the 6/2 meeting agenda:

I. Comments will be assembled and transmitted to Council members as follows:

1. At 5:00 p.m. before the City Council meeting, staff will download a copy of all comments submitted by web form and will scan in any hard copy comments received. Staff will sort the comments by public hearing, agenda item or general public comment, and then share the comments with the City Council email group, the City Clerk, the City Manager and her designees. Such comments will be treated in the same manner as general correspondence.

1. After 5:00 p.m. and during the Council meeting, when a person submits a web comment, the comment will be emailed in real time to the City Council email group, the City Clerk, and the City Manager or her designee.

It was a brief meeting with one public comment from the local Libertarian Party chair concerned about the Emergency Order and a unanimous vote to renew the Emergency Order.


The April 14th Study Session (video, agenda) covered the topics of the Consolidated Plan for the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) related projects and funding. This included the Annual Action Plan to implement it. The second topic covered was coronavirus related funding via the federal relief package known as the CARES Act.

The Consolidated Plan report has a lot of technical details for those interested and wonky enough to be able to decipher it. There were some technical discussions about how coronavirus relief bills have impacted spending caps and increased disaster readiness. For example it's possible to reallocate funds for "urgent needs" related to a declared emergency under certain circumstances.

The CARES Act added some flexibility on HUD related funding in the first Study Session topic, but the second topic of the Study Session focused more on the details of the CARES Act itself. The City's 2020 fund allocation was just over $1 million, with nearly $600,000 to be allocated within 30 days in the first allocation.

There was a significant amount of Q & A after the CARES Act presentation. The federal government is encouraging local governments to spend the money quickly to ensure it has the intended impact. The City is expected to spend the money first and then receive reimbursements. Those reimbursements were described as definite as federal reimbursements had never been an issue in the past. There were some technical issues discussed to avoid redundant spending under "duplication" rules. There were also discussions on how to implement various aspects with contracts, RFPs, public private partnerships or intergovernmental agreements.


The April 21st Regular City Council meeting (video, agenda) was brief. After the agenda items passed, including renewing the Emergency Order, the mayor encouraged residents to wear masks and continue social distancing efforts to "flatten the curve." The April 28th Study Session was canceled due to a lack of any agenda items for it.


May Preview:

In the upcoming May updates there are a lot more issues related to the Phase 3 reopening, economic impacts, revenue declines, and delayed projects and spending. The City of Champaign was on relatively stronger fiscal footing than many local governments heading into the coronavirus pandemic, but there are still serious concerns about core services for constituents. The coronavirus has impacted and amplified a lot of the pre-existing issues that American local governments, including Champaign, were already struggling with such as affordable housing, economic and educational disparities, and access to health care.

There were also concerns raised about the ongoing delays in the County Board's financial audit for the 2018 Fiscal Year and worries about that putting funding for local social service programs in jeopardy. An overview by the outside auditor and questions from several local government officials at the beginning of the most recent Champaign County Regional Planning Commission meeting delved into the status and ongoing concerns. The City of Champaign Mayor's personal plea is available from the May 19th City Council meeting here.

Coronavirus and General Updates

Sometimes the Cheat Sheet doesn't have any posts for days or weeks depending on how busy everyone is and everything going on in the world. The last 12 weeks since we last posted have been an extraordinary time for everyone.

The coronavirus went through some naming conventions and concerns about political correctness versus inflaming racial tensions. Older posts still refer to the likely geographic origin, but the technical names for second severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, or SARS-CoV-2 and the coronavirus disease of 2019, or COVID-19, that it causes are a lot to type out.

I'll be referring to the coronavirus currently kicking humanity in the teeth as the coronavirus and qualify any other coronavirus with additional information (e.g. the original SARS or in contrast with less virulent coronaviruses that cause other diseases).

The latest local statistics on the coronavirus here are still available on the C-UPHD website here, with regular updates on their facebook here. There's also a collaborative effort to help businesses during the reopening phases here.

For folks looking for more detailed information and with some spare time on their hands (and coffee), I strongly recommend the last Champaign County Board of Health meeting video here (with a 17 minute delay during logons and Zoom setup). The meeting runs about two and half hours, but it begins with an update by Julie Pryde of the C-U Public Health Department with the latest information on local outbreaks and efforts. If you keep watching beyond that you'll get to see her respond to community and County Board member concerns on a host of issues.

Some highlight's from that update last week included details on the the 19 local outbreaks in Champaign County. There were over 700 people in quarantine (potentially exposed and avoiding contact and further spread) and 188 people in isolation (confirmed infected and avoiding contact with others). The low hospitalization rates due to the lower ages of many of those who have been exposed.

Critically, our local region, including Champaign County, is in a "sweet spot" according to Pryde when it comes to our hospital capacity in the cities and overall infection rates and treatment needs. This means that we're on track to move to Phase 3 of the reopening process. This next step allows other classes of businesses to open along with essential businesses and relaxes some other areas of the Stay at Home Executive Order. She answered numerous questions and addressed several concerns about the timing and process of this.

Phase 3 has a minimum period of 28 days (or two incubation cycles) to ensure that changes to the mitigation policy are being done safely. With the exponential nature of out of control infections, lives hang in the balance between being patient enough to have accurate data and acting quickly enough to control outbreaks before they get out of hand. An exhausting and constant effort that has been going on locally since the beginning of the year.

One of the issues that came up was child care access expanding in Phase 3, which would be necessary for many parents, but there were concerns about needing more details. Illinois Newsroom had a blurb on that this morning:

Child care facilities  will be able to operate again once Illinois enters the third phase of its reopening plan, which is expected Friday. Maria Whalen is president and CEO of Illinois Action for Children’s, which offered input into the plan to reopen child care centers. “I think that this is a plan that recognizes that at the end of the day, we’re talking about children who are being cared for in congregate settings,” said Whalen.  Newly reopened child care facilities will limit rooms sizes to eight for infants and 10 for others. There are now new sanitation and social distancing requirements. Children over the age of 2 will wear face covering when possible.

More information will probably be available as policy meets reality next week.

The meeting ended by adding an additional June 1st Meeting at 5:30pm (with Zoom meeting information for people to attend remotely to be made available on the Champaign County website later). It will be for additional public participation and updates prior to the regular meeting scheduled on June 16th. 

I'll try to get more updates and information on the local Cheat Sheet going forward. There have already been some updates on the Cheat Sheet of Champaign County for anyone interested in County government. We've been catching up on local government meetings and there should be some overview posts soon. I apologize for the long break while adjusting to the every changing landscape on how local governments were adapting and a tsunami of news and information that we just couldn't keep up with. I have a huge to do list on updates and information on how people can still participate in local government.

Good luck and stay safe, everybody!

Local Coronavirus Preparation Updates

With the latest updates nationally with community spread incidents on the West Coast, it's worth highlighting some local information sources and coverage about how to prepare for an increasing number of cases in the United States. The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District put out this informational flyer for the public:

More information available from their facebook post and facebook page for updates. The CDC has the national updates here. Some of the basics in that flyer were also reiterated in Tom's Mailbag today. WCCU had some coverage yesterday:

While there are no known cases in the C-U area, the virus is known to spread quickly around the world.

Now, the Champaign Urbana Public Health District is warning residents in the Champaign area to prepare for the spreading of the virus.

In a Facebook post, it tells people to prepare to stay in their homes for at least two weeks, in case you get sick.

More at that full article here with a video segment. The News-Gazette had additional information on preparation yesterday here:

Preparing for coronavirus? 'It's not as simple as slapping a mask on your face'
...
[Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Administrator Julie Pryde] urged everyone looking to buy N-95 respirator masks to consider that these masks are going to be most urgently needed by health care workers and supply is running low.

She and Healy also advised taking similar precautions used to help prevent the spread of flu.

While there’s not a coronavirus vaccine, there are other protective steps, among them washing hands with soap and water for 20 seconds, disinfecting surfaces touched by sick people, staying home when you’re sick, covering up coughing and sneezes and staying alert to updates from public health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

That full article here.

Health Updates: Covid-19 and Meningitis

The latest updates on the Wuhan coronavirus, which the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District is calling by its new name, Covid-19 are available at their website here. They link to the latest CDC update on February 13th which still describes the risk to those in the general American public without relevant contact as low (emphasis added):

The potential public health threat posed by COVID-19 virus is high, both globally and to the United States. The fact that this virus has caused illness, including illness resulting in death, and sustained person-to-person spread in China is concerning. These factors meet two of the criteria of a pandemic. It’s unclear how the situation will unfold, but risk is dependent on exposure. At this time, some people will have an increased risk of infection, for example healthcare workers caring for patients with COVID-19 and other close contacts of patients with COVID-19. For the general American public, who are unlikely to be exposed to this virus, the immediate health risk from COVID-19 is considered low at this time.

More from the full CDC information page here. The last update on the WILL coronavirus information blog was also on February 13th and is no longer linked on their main page. I'm not sure what that means for future updates.

There were unconfirmed stories about a potential coronavirus case a little over a week ago suggesting a child was under observation. Those stories were never confirmed and so far the only hard update I have on that is from WCCU quoting local health officials that there are no confirmed cases locally.


Bacterial Meningitis Case:

The McKinley Health Center on campus had an update on a meningitis case that stated that those possibly exposed have already been contacted:

A student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has been diagnosed with a case of bacterial meningitis, as confirmed by the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (C-UPHD). The student, a resident of off-campus housing, has been isolated at an area hospital for treatment, and authorities have identified and treated anyone in who may have had close contact with the student – including hospital staff.

As a result of those efforts, there is no longer believed to be a risk of the illness spreading.

Bacterial meningitis is a serious illness that spreads to other people through sharing personal items, kissing or prolonged close exposure such as residing in the same household. There is low risk to other people in the general community.

When the university learns of incidents like this, it acts to limit the potential spread within campus and into the broader community. The university works with state and local health officials, and McKinley Health Center to contact the students, staff, faculty members or others in the community who may have been exposed during that period. At this time, C-UPHD or McKinley has contacted all those identified at risk.

That news release available here. There was also coverage in the News-Gazette and WCIA. From the News-Gazette article:

The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District’s public health administrator, Julie Pryde, said that since meningitis requires close contact to spread, it’s relatively easy to contain compared to diseases like measles.

“It’s been a busy day” tracking down the student’s associates and giving them antibiotics, Pryde said, but “there’s no risk to the community.”

That full article here. More general information on bacterial meningitis is available at the CDC here.


Other Health Updates:

WILL reported earlier this week that OSF Healthcare is promoting an app to help connect people who need emergency CPR response with people who know CPR:

OSF Healthcare is encouraging people to install an app on their phone that will alert them when people nearby are in need of life-saving CPR. The PulsePoint app launched a couple years ago in Peoria and Champaign counties and recently expanded to Vermilion county. The American Heart Association says the survival rate for people experiencing cardiac arrest is less than 12 percent but CPR can double or triple the chances of survival. OSF Healthcare reports that since PulsePoint launched in Champaign county in 2017, more than 7000 people have subscribed to the app. Formal CPR training is encouraged but not required.

From WILL's "News Around Illinois" update here. More on PulsePoint from the OSF news release including several informational videos here.

There was also a happier story from Smile Politely about how the local Champaign County Humane Society brings animals to visit nursing home residents who could benefit. A little more background is available from the CCHS on the Queenie Mills memorial dedication page:

Dr. Mills established the Pet-a-Pet program in 1978, through which volunteers took pets on weekly visits to residents of Champaign-Urbana nursing homes.  She knew that interacting with animals made people feel better, and made it part of her life’s work to provide that experience to those who could benefit the most; children and the elderly or infirm.

More on Queenie Mills here. More on the CCHA at their main website here.