Today, President Preckwinkle joined the Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC) to mark Digital Inclusion Week by announcing a new initiative to provide laptops for all school-age HACC residents who are still in need of e-learning devices for the 2020-21 school year. Digital Inclusion Week is a national effort to raise awareness about digital inequities and join nationwide efforts to close those gaps.

County partners with local organizations to distribute masks in 18 at-risk communities and expands #MaskUp campaign

Oak Forest, IL — As coronavirus case counts and deaths continue to rise, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle along with Department of Emergency Management and Regional Security Executive Director William Barnes announced today the procurement of half a million cloth masks for distribution to the County’s most vulnerable residents.

With significant roots in Chicago dating back to 1857, the wonderfully preserved hospital has been transformed into a 210-suite and guest room Hyatt House and Hyatt Place Chicago Medical/University District

People of color victims of 95 percent of 2020 homicides

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office has confirmed 677 homicides this year, surpassing the total of 675 for all of 2019. This puts the County on track to exceed 900 homicide deaths in 2020.

Today, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle joined Oak Lawn Mayor Sandra Bury, Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, Illinois Representative Kelly Burke and other local officials to announce the distribution of $680,838.16 to the Village of Oak Lawn to assist with COVID-19 response and recovery efforts. The event was the second in a series of planned public appearances to urge all eligible jurisdictions to take the necessary steps to receive vital aid from Cook County.

Call to action is less than one month before important deadline for distribution of $51 million

Today, the Housing Authority of Cook County (HACC) and Comcast announced a partnership to provide in-home, high-speed Internet service to Housing Authority residents with school-age children through the Internet Essentials Partnership Program (IEPP). 

The service, which will be free of charge to qualifying HACC residents for the 2020-21 school year, will allow students to participate in their schools’ remote learning programs, as well as provide Internet access to other members of the household.

Today, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced the second annual Cook County Racial Equity Week, to be held September 14 – 18 in 2020. This year’s theme is Cook County Past, Present and Future: Acknowledging past harm, reckoning with impact today, and casting a vision for our county’s future.

Another grim milestone was addressed today by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Cook County Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Ponni Arunkumar. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office surpassed 10,000 cases handled in 2020 early Monday morning. The Office handled 6,274 cases in all of 2019.

This milestone comes as Cook County is coping with more than 5,000 COVID-19 deaths, 282 suicide deaths, 1,400 opioid-related deaths and close to 600 homicides so far this year.

A Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) will open today in Cook County to help residents recover from recent severe weather. The MARC is designed to allow residents to access disaster related relief services and information.  The MARC brings together representatives from local and state agencies as well as essential support organizations. This unique recovery center is open to all Illinois residents impacted by recent storms.