Coronavirus

Members of the state Senate Veterans Affairs Committee had pointed questions for officials with the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs about the agency’s response to an outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home that has resulted in at least 27 resident deaths from COVID-19-related complications.

The Town of Normal is using federal funds to launch a Small Business Relief Program that will offer companies with 50 or fewer full-time employees up to $15,000 in grants.

The town has received $450,000 from the Local CURE Economic Support program that uses federal dollars allocated to Illinois through the CARES Act. The City of Bloomington has a similar program.

The McLean County Health Department is reporting 321 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and one death over the weekend, as the county’s testing positivity fell to 8.3%--the first time in more than a week the rate has been in the single digits.

The liquor licenses of 12 Bloomington bars recently cited for violating the governor’s emergency orders banning indoor service are safe, for now.

McLean County’s testing positivity rate dropped to 11.3% on Thursday, down more than 3 percentage points from the day before.

McLean County's testing positivity rate rose to a record 14.9% on Wednesday as the county surpassed 7,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and reached a new high for hospitalizations.

The McLean County Board has approved keeping the property tax rate the same, as part of next year’s $104.5 million budget.

Gov. JB Pritzker announced the entire state would enter Tier 3 of his mitigation plan starting Friday as he noted the best way for Illinoisans to avoid another stay-at-home order was by staying home.

UPDATED 8:25 p.m. | The owners of 12 bars in Bloomington will face possible suspension or revocation of their liquor licenses for allegedly defying the state's latest COVID restrictions.

McLean County public health officials on Tuesday urged people to celebrate Thanksgiving only with those living in their household, as they announced sobering new records for hospitalizations and testing positivity rate.

McLean County reached its worst point in the pandemic yet on Monday, with the testing positivity rate and active case numbers reaching record highs. Two more deaths were reported.

Illinois State University athletics is selling photo cutouts that fans can buy to help fill the seats at Redbird Arena during the basketball and volleyball seasons.

UPDATED 5:35 p.m. | Unit 5 schools will move to all-remote learning starting next Wednesday because of rising coronavirus infection numbers.

UPDATED 4:20 p.m. | Bloomington-Normal hospitals are running low on available beds as the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage, officials said Friday.

Republicans on the Illinois House Veterans’ Affairs Committee called for a hearing this week to investigate a COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans’ Home where at least nine residents have died after testing positive for the virus.

How many people with COVID-19 are being treated right now at Bloomington-Normal’s two hospitals? It’s a simple question that apparently can’t be answered right now.

McLean County health officials announced 421 new coronavirus cases and the 42th COVID-related death on Thursday, as the county’s testing positivity rate jumped to 10.9%. That’s the highest rate since Sept. 6, following a surge of new cases when Illinois State University students returned to campus.

The Bloomington-Normal area is the No. 3 metro area in the country, per capita, for where new COVID-19 cases are increasing the fastest, according to a New York Times analysis.

The Illinois High School Association has invited Gov. JB Pritzker’s office and representatives from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to discuss the association’s plans to hold a basketball season this winter, against the state’s recommendation.

Bloomington-Normal’s hospitals are urging the public to follow public health guidance as they see more and more patients being admitted due to COVID-19.

McLean County health officials announced 167 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday as the county topped 1,000 active cases for the first time since September, following outbreaks on the Illinois State University campus after students returned to campus.