Here’s how Illinois will help nonprofit organizations affected by the coronavirus
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has announced a new statewide fund to support local foundations, organizations and nonprofits in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund, modeled on the Chicago COVID-19 Response Fund, had already raised $23 million dollars for disbursement among organizations throughout the state, Pritzker said. The fund is chaired by his older sister and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.
The fund prioritizes providing money for emergency food and basic supplies, offering interim housing and shelter, expanding primary health care, assisting with utility and healthcare expenses, supporting children and families enduring school closings and assisting nonprofits in operational costs, Penny Pritzker said during a news conference in Springfield on Thursday.
The United Way of Illinois and Alliance of Illinois Community Foundations are operating the new fund, separately and independently from the state. Pritzker said he and his wife had already donated $2 million to the fund and that his foundation had separately donated another $2 million.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Illinois has risen to 2,538, an increase of 673 from Wednesday. The total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the state has also increased to 26. Dr. Ngozie Ezike, the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, announced the new statewide totals at the news conference.
Pritzker also announced that Illinois had been granted a request for a federal major disaster declaration, which will provide emergency funding to increase hospital capacity and expanding tele-health care “to safely reach more Illinoisans.”
In the metro-east, seven new coronavirus cases were announced Thursday.
St. Clair County has three new cases, for a total of 13 there. Madison County has three new cases, for a total of six. And Clinton County has one new case, for a total of five.
In St. Clair County, the new patients include a man in his 40s, a man in his 70s and a woman in her 20s. The St. Clair County Health Department said it is believed they were all exposed to the virus in the community.
Details about the new coronavirus patients in Madison County were not immediately available.
A man in his 30s is Clinton County’s fifth positive case. The Clinton County Health Department said he had contact with a confirmed positive COVID-19 patient in California. He is from out-of-state but had been working in Clinton County and was diagnosed there. The health department said he is now quarantined at home in another state.
This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 3:13 PM.
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