Pritzker prepares for the next round

Chicago, suburbs put into separate COVID-19 regions under Pritzker’s newly reshuffled reopening plan
The Chicago Democrat cast the retooling as part of “a more granular approach in this phase of the response to COVID-19.” It essentially reshuffles the reopening regions the state is divided into to 11, rather than the four large ones under his current reopening plan.
By Neal Earley and Stefano Esposito Jul 15, 2020, 1:38pm CDT


Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks to residents about the ongoing effort by the government to curb the spread of COVID-19 at Edward Coles School last week. Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times file



After complaints from some suburban and downstate officials seeking greater control in fighting the coronavirus, Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday said he would divide Illinois into smaller regions under his reopening plan, separating hard hit Chicago and suburban Cook County from other areas.

The Chicago Democrat cast the retooling from four regions to 11 as part of a “a more granular approach in this phase of the response to COVID-19.”

The governor’s move comes as the state reported another 1,187 coronavirus cases and eight additional deaths from COVID-19. It’s the fourth time this month that the daily caseload has topped the 1,000 mark. The rolling seven-day positivity rate — the percent of positive cases among those newly tested — also crept up to 3.1%, from 2.6% less than a week ago.

The newly reshuffled reopening plan is based on the 11 regions in the state’s Emergency Medical Service regions that are used by state public health officials. Chicago’s collar counties will also be divided into three separate regions under the governor’s updated plan.

Pritzker said the new, smaller regions will give the state more flexibility to combat coronavirus if a locality experiences an outbreak, “to carefully, but deliberately — depending on the severity of the situation — control the spread of the virus while continuing to allow a region to be open to the greatest extent possible.”

Pritzker’s announcement comes after both Democratic and Republican lawmakers called for more local control over the coronavirus plan. The four regions the state is currently divided into are too big, they argue, and ignore the realities on the ground in individual communities.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker answers questions from the media on Tuesday. Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times file

Some legislators from the collar counties said they don’t like being grouped with Chicago in Illinois’ northern region under the governor’s original plan, arguing that some suburban and rural parts of the collar counties are not facing nearly the type of viral outbreak that is occurring in Chicago.

On June 26, all regions in Illinois moved into Phase 4 of the governor’s reopening plan, meaning that bars, restaurants and some other public spaces could reopen with limited capacity.

Pritzker said Phase 5 couldn’t come until there’s a vaccine, “a very effective treatment or the elimination of cases over a sustained period of time.”

But he also said: “Opening up our economy does not have to come with a spike in cases. Other countries have done it successfully, while reducing cases and infection rates, but that requires vigilance on the part of all of us.”

Pritzker’s new grouping creates six downstate and five Chicago area regions. Chicago and suburban Cook County each are divided into distinct regions, and Kankakee and Will counties make up a south suburban region, Kane and DuPage a west suburban region and Lake and McHenry a north suburban one.

Pritzker’s revisions received positive reviews from some Downstate Republicans who have called for more local control.

State Rep. Ryan Spain, R-Peoria, who said back in May that Pritzker’s plan “doesn’t play in Peoria” said he is pleased that the governor is now dividing the state up based on the existing Emergency Medical Services regions.State Rep. Ryan Spain, R-Peoria, during a Zoom news conference in May. Screen image from BlueRoomStream.

“That is something that I always thought made better sense, because it is using the alignment of hospital service areas and emergency medical transport, and there’s some reasoning for why those districts are aligned the way they are,” Spain said.

State Rep. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, who is suing Pritzker over his reopening plan, said he was “pleased that he is evidently listening” to downstate lawmakers such as himself and reconsidering earlier decisions, but Bailey said he still thinks the governor is overstepping his authority.

“That doesn’t necessarily change the fact that he doesn’t have the authority to enforce his tiers or his plans,” Bailey said. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”State Rep. Darren Bailey, left, at the state Capitol in Springfield earlier this year; Gov. J.B. Pritzker, right, at the Thompson Center in March. From Facebook; Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Chicago Sun-Times file.

Pritzker’s reshuffling comes as Mayor Lori Lightfoot warned Wednesday that the city may need to roll back its reopening unless young people start paying closer attention to social distancing and face covering guidelines.

Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, echoed the mayor’s remarks Wednesday, noting there have been “dozens and dozens of reports just this week” of outbreaks at house parties, among team sports and at churches.

Ezike said many of the new cases were among the young, from ages 10 to 29.

“They are having higher case rates now than ever before in this pandemic,” she said

She urged parents to “assist and guide these teenagers and young adults to make the right decisions, as everyone’s decisions affect all of us.”Illinois Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike speaks at an April 23 news briefing. Tyler LaRiviere/Sun-Times file



Illinois public health officials are struggling to avoid the backsliding in other states with more aggressive reopening plans, particularly in the South and the West.




The optimism over Illinois’ steadily declining coronavirus numbers dimmed a bit last week, when the state saw a three-day stretch with new COVID-19 cases topping 1,000, including one day that marked

the highest daily total in five weeks.