Drug resistant fungus spreading
A fungus that officials said is often resistant to antifungal drugs has been detected in more than half of U.S. states including Illinois.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the fungus was first detected in 2016 and has spread at an alarming rate between 2020 and 2021 in health care facilities.
Attorneys general push car companies on thefts
The state of Illinois is joining 21 other states in calling on Kia America and Hyundai Motor Company to take swift action to remedy the rash of car thefts that they say are the result of the companies’ failure to equip vehicles with anti-theft immobilizers.
Models made from 2010 to 2021 can be operated without a key. Last year alone, there were over 7,000 Hyundai and Kia thefts in Chicago. The companies recently announced a customer service campaign to upgrade the software, but in a letter, Attorney General Kwame Raoul and a coalition of 21 other attorneys general said the plan is insufficient and incomplete.
$175 million business grants announced
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity has announced $175 million in available grant funding through the Back to Business program.
Following state recovery for businesses totaling nearly $1.5 billion, the latest American Rescue Plan Act-funded opportunity is designed to provide additional support for the hardest-hit sectors, including restaurants, hotels and businesses or organizations in the creative arts sector.
As outlined in statute, grant award amounts will be determined by revenue declines, as reflected on tax returns, and funding for hotels will be allocated by number of rooms.