COVID in Illinois

A look back at the top news headlines for this week in news with Kye Martin.

A look back at the top news headlines for this week in news with Lexi Sutter.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have created an easy way to know how long a person should remain in isolation after being exposed to or testing positive for COVID-19 with a new quarantine calculator.

BA.2, also known as “stealth omicron,” is considered a subvariant of omicron.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike will be leaving her position later this month after serving three years in the role of Illinois’ top doctor. Dr. Ezike sits down with NBC 5’s Mary Ann Ahern for a one-on-one interview.

Gov. JB Pritzker, along with Illinois health care officials, said in a COVID update to the state that they worry coronavirus numbers will get worse before improving again. NBC 5 political reporter Mary Ann Ahern reports.

People who contract a breakthrough infection after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine may acquire a “super immunity” to the virus, researchers from the Oregon Health & Science University found.

What should you do if you or someone you have been in close contact with tests positive for coronavirus? How long are you contagious, what are the quarantine guidelines and when can you see people again?

Two more states were added back onto Chicago’s travel advisory Tuesday, bringing the number of states on the city’s warning list to 42 states, plus the District of Columbia, in the lead-up to the Christmas holiday.

For nearly half a year, Shaquita Slaughter has been fighting to survive one of the worst cases of the coronavirus that doctors at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital have ever seen. NBC 5’s Christian Farr reports.

For the second day in a row, one of Illinois’ health care regions has zero available intensive care unit beds amid a surge in COVID cases and hospitalizations.

Following the death of a Chicago COVID patient at the center of a debate surrounding the use of the drug ivermectin, NBC 5 is looking into treatment methods currently being used in local hospitals. Kate Chappell has the story.

Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health, made it clear that ‘COVID is not over’ as Chicago joined Illinois in entering Phase 5 Friday.

Officials in suburban Lake County are working to step up vaccination efforts for teachers, and it’s not a moment too soon as educators want to help speed up a return to normalcy both for themselves and for their students. “I just think it’s a safe thing to do, and a responsible thing to do,” Warren Township High School teacher...

Teachers in Lake County have begun receiving the coronavirus vaccine with a system they describe as “hassle-free.” NBC 5’s Kate Chappell reports.