Good morning, Chicago.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines are no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women — a move immediately questioned by several public health experts.
In a 58-second video posted on the social media site X, Kennedy said he removed COVID-19 shots from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations for those groups. No one from the CDC was in the video, and CDC officials referred questions about the announcement to Kennedy and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
No other details were released, and HHS officials did not immediately respond to questions about how the decision was made.
Some doctors and public health leaders called the move concerning and confusing.
And here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including: what Mayor Brandon Johnson is saying about the CTA’s fiscal cliff, the latest on the Bears’ proposed move to Arlington Heights and what we learned about new Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill.
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Chicago fatal car crash totals remain stubbornly high in pandemic’s wake
Citywide, fatal crashes now are occurring at a higher rate than before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when stay-at-home orders forced scores of drivers to keep off the roads.
Since the start of 2019, more than 1,040 people have died of injuries suffered in Chicago motor vehicle crashes, according to data from the Cook County medical examiner’s office. Of those, more than 300 were pedestrians. About 200 of those died in crashes that occurred on Chicago expressways, records show.
Information of 38,000 UChicago medical group patients potentially exposed in cybersecurity breach
The personal information of about 38,000 patients of a UChicago Medicine medical group may have been exposed in a cybersecurity incident involving one of the group’s vendors.
UCM Medical Group said in a news release that one of its vendors — debt collection agency Nationwide Recovery Service — notified the group that in July an unauthorized person accessed the company’s systems. The person obtained information from certain files and folders, according to the news release.
Mayor Brandon Johnson urges ‘expediency’ in addressing CTA fiscal cliff
Mayor Brandon Johnson yesterday reiterated his urgency for Springfield to hammer out a deal addressing the Chicago Transit Authority’s fiscal cliff before the current legislative session ends this week, while remaining vague on his latest demands.
At his weekly City Hall news conference, the mayor again called for Chicago area transit to receive an “equitable distribution and fair share of resources” as state lawmakers mull proposals including whether to tie a bailout of the CTA to a proposal overhauling the governance structure of the Chicago area’s public transit systems. However, it remained unclear what the Johnson administration’s role will be in those discussions over the coming days.
Former Portage Mayor James Snyder seeks dismissal of bribery charge ahead of sentencing on IRS charge
Former Portage Mayor James Snyder would like to see his bribery charge dismissed with prejudice before sentencing on an IRS charge and for the court to bar prosecutors from re-trying the bribery charge at sentencing.
Chicago Housing Authority selling more land for private development near Chicago Fire training facility
The Chicago Housing Authority board approved a land sale to a private developer to construct 23 townhomes, at least four of which will be considered affordable, despite opposition from many housing and community advocates.
The new sale follows the recent opening of the Chicago Fire Football Club’s training facility, which sits on 23 acres of land that CHA has leased to the team.
A long way to go: Chicago Bears proposed move to Arlington Heights would require complicated approval by local taxing bodies
The Chicago Bears have submitted required traffic and financial impact studies to Arlington Heights, marking the next step in their quest to build a new football stadium there. The studies are considered preliminary drafts that will be worked on further with a village consultant, so Village Manager Randall Recklaus declined to release them publicly for now.
But a Bears move to Arlington Heights will require much more than those plans.
WNBA says it cannot substantiate claims that racist remarks were made by fans at Chicago Sky-Indiana Fever game
The WNBA says it cannot substantiate claims that racist fan behavior took place during a game in Indianapolis between the Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever earlier this month. The league said its investigation included gathering information from fans, team and arena staff, as well as an “audio and video review of the game.”
5 things we learned about new Chicago Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill, including his vision for Connor Bedard
During Jeff Blashill’s introductory news conference at the United Center, the new Chicago Blackhawks coach was asked the most relevant, to-the-point question in this “tough” sports town: How long will it take to get to a championship level?
“Is that my ‘Welcome to Chicago’ moment?” Blashill said as a smile lifted a corner of his mouth. Yes, it was.
Rolf Saxon returns as CIA flunky William Donloe in "Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning."
Column: In the new ‘Mission: Impossible,’ Rolf Saxon is the secret weapon, a ‘coffee guy’ no more
You may not know Rolf Saxon’s name, but you may know about his latest film, writes Tribune film critic Michael Phillips. “Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning,” the super-expensive $400 million franchise finale (though who’s to say), now off to a strong $200 million global box office launch in its first weekend, a record for the eight-film series.
Twenty-nine years ago, Saxon, a veteran stage and screen actor who makes his home in northern California, was hired for a small role with four lines of expedient dialogue in the first “Mission: Impossible,” directed by Brian De Palma.
Rick Derringer, who had a hit with ‘Hang On Sloopy’ and produced ‘Weird Al,’ dies at 77
Guitarist and singer Rick Derringer, who shot to fame at 17 when his band The McCoys recorded “Hang On Sloopy,” had a hit with “Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo” and earned a Grammy Award for producing “Weird Al” Yankovic’s debut album, has died. He was 77.
