The latest
Early testing of COVID-19 vaccine shows promise in healthy volunteers
An experimental vaccine against the coronavirus showed encouraging results in very early testing, triggering hoped-for immune responses in eight healthy, middle-aged volunteers, its maker announced Monday.
The vaccine by Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna Inc., generated antibodies similar to those seen in people who have recovered from COVID-19 in study volunteers who were given either a low or medium dose.
In the next phase of the study, led by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, researchers will try to determine which dose is best for a definitive experiment that they aim to start in July.
The vaccine seems safe so far, the company said. A high dose version is being dropped after spurring some short-term side effects.
News
11:01 a.m. Oprah Winfrey is latest celeb to host virtual story time for Chicago kids
Oprah Winfrey read “The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse” to kids across Chicago Monday — virtually, of course.
The video posted Monday morning is the latest additions to Chicago Public Library’s collection, which also includes story time with musician and Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy, actress Jane Lynch, Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Cardinal Blase Cupich. A video of the Obamas reading “The Word Collector” posted Thursday morning.
Live From the Library: Oprah Winfrey!
Join us Monday morning for #LiveFromTheLibrary with one of Chicago’s all-time greats- the incredible Oprah Winfrey! Tune in at 10 AM CST to see Ms. Winfrey read The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy.
Posted by Chicago Public Library on Monday, May 18, 2020
Library officials behind the “Live From the Library” project began posting videos in April. The collection includes nearly 20 videos — with dozens more to come — featuring both celebrities and Chicago librarians reading stories. A new video is being posted each weekday.
“It’s a way to reach people, to bring the love of stories and books to families,” said Chicago Library Commissioner Andrea Telli.
Telli said it was a testament to the city that so many former Chicagoans chose to participate.
“They feel the way we feel about Chicago. I think it says a lot about roots and the way the city stays with you,” Telli said.
Read the full story from Mitch Dudek here.
8:18 a.m. Latest COVID-19 stats for Chicago region suggest curve flattening
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Sunday that it processed 20,295 tests Saturday and identified 1,734 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the state’s total case count — although many have since recovered — to 94,191.
Sunday’s numbers include several encouraging signs. The 8.5% statewide positivity rate Sunday falls well below the 15% positivity rate recorded over the past seven days, reflecting both increased testing availability and a possible flattening of the curve.
The northeast region had an 18.3% positivity rate Sunday, marking the fourth consecutive day that region, which includes Chicago and its suburbs, has hit an important benchmark.
In Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s reopening plan, each region of the state must have a positivity rate below 20% for 14 consecutive days to advance to the third phase. That phase would permit some non-essential businesses, like salons and barbershops, to reopen with precautions.
Hospital admissions of coronavirus patients have also fallen 29.7% since May 1 in the northeast region.
6:51 a.m. Work-from-home Congress: House OKs proxy voting for first time
Neither Civil War nor Great Depression nor any other national crisis has pushed the House to allow lawmakers to vote by proxy — without being “present,” as the Constitution requires. That’s about to change during the coronavirus pandemic.
The House approved Friday a package of historic rules changes so Congress can keep functioning even while it’s partly closed. The shift will dramatically change the look, if not the operation, of the legislative branch — launching a 21st century WFH House, like others, “working from home.”
“This House must continue legislating,” Rep. Jim McGovern, the chairman of the House Rules Committee, said during a lengthy session ahead of the vote. “And we have to do so in a way that is safe for all those around us.”
Debate over the changes has been fierce. As President Donald Trump encourages Americans back to work, the 435-member House has stayed away due to health risks while the smaller Senate has resumed operations.
Democrats argue the House can rely on technology for remote work as the pandemic drags on. But Republicans objected to what they see as a power grab during the crisis. The vote was 217-189.
Read the full story here.
6:20 a.m. Obama criticizes U.S. leaders’ virus response in online graduation speech
Former President Barack Obama on Saturday criticized U.S. leaders overseeing the nation’s response to the coronavirus, telling college graduates in an online commencement address that the pandemic shows many officials “aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”
Obama spoke on “Show Me Your Walk, HBCU Edition,” a two-hour event for students graduating from historically black colleges and universities broadcast on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter. His remarks were unexpectedly political, given the venue, and touched on current events beyond the virus and its social and economic impacts.
“More than anything, this pandemic has fully, finally torn back the curtain on the idea that so many of the folks in charge know what they’re doing,” Obama said. “A lot them aren’t even pretending to be in charge.”
Read the full story by The Associated Press here.
5:55 a.m. Bittersweet e-ceremony for UIC grad: ‘I didn’t really get to say goodbye’
Edith Mendez watched a slideshow of photos from her college experience, read a Spanish quote she handpicked to thank her family and listened to a speech delivered by her college dean Saturday.
But the 2020 graduate from the University of Illinois at Chicago did so from the backyard of her family’s Berwyn home, not on campus with the momentous ceremony she’d always imagined.
“It was a little bit strange — maybe, in some ways, disappointing,” said Mendez, a first-generation college grad. “Just because I didn’t get to walk across the stage.”
She joined more than 5,000 UIC students — and tens of thousands more at other Illinois schools — left with no choice but to celebrate their graduation with an online ceremony in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
UIC still plans to hold an in-person commencement for their 2020 class sometime later this year, but with the state’s stay-at-home order banning large gatherings, the virtual stand-in will have to do for now.
Read the full story by Ben Pope here.
New cases
Analysis & Commentary
7:12 a.m. COVID-19 scales back youth sports. That’s a win for many kids
My heart will break for older teens if they don’t get to play sports in Illinois this summer, or maybe this fall, because of the coronavirus. Most are nearing the end of their competitive sports days, and you hate to see them robbed.
For younger kids, I see a silver lining. It’s a chance for them to do more bike riding. They can learn to rollerblade or skateboard. Maybe they can join their parents for runs or walks.
They could get a much-needed break from an over-scheduled life, especially when it comes to sports.
Or, maybe not. In Missouri, a 40-team youth baseball tournament was held last weekend by GameTime Tournaments. You won’t see this in Illinois right now because of the stay-at-home order to curb the spread of the virus. But, at least one Illinois team, the Black Sox from central Illinois, made the trip, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
GameTime instituted social distancing guidelines, including no high-fives, and sanitized the ball often. But some things can’t be helped in baseball: The catcher always will be positioned behind the batter. Players bump into each other on some plays. Out of habit, coaches are bound to get close to players to give instruction.
After being at home for weeks, the games had to be a relief for the players and parents who watched. But 40 teams? That’s downright irresponsible, even if permissible by Missouri’s looser restrictions related to the virus.
Fewer games, or no games for a year, could be a very good thing for kids.
