Gov. Pritzker wants free testing for residents and staff at all Illinois nursing homes
Posted on April 29, 2020
The state now has 50,355 coronavirus cases and 2,215 deaths. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)
By Dave Dahl
CHICAGO – Gov. JB Pritzker says he wants free testing for residents and staff at all nursing homes in Illinois, whether they have any coronavirus patients or not.
For now, Pritzker said Wednesday the Illinois Department of Public Health “has secured a special contract with Quest Diagnostics to run 3000 tests per day from Illinois long-term care facilities at no cost to the facilities. And has promised to provide results in a 48-hour window”
As for a possible strike next week by nursing home workers. Pritzker said, “We cannot let our seniors down. We cannot let people in our long-term care facilities down. It’s too important.” Pritzker urged the two sides to get bargaining and get a deal done.
The state now has 50,355 coronavirus cases and 2215 deaths.
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…