Today’s update discusses the expansion of child care benefits to essential workers and the challenges of social distancing in nursing homes, prisons, and other closed populations. Additionally, the update discusses different state agencies, which are working to keep residents informed and mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

CHILD CARE BENEFITS

  • Governor Pritzker has announced that all essential workers in Illinois qualify for the Child Care Assistance Program. Qualifying workers (such as doctors, nurses, healthcare support staff, grocery store clerks, and food producers) will have most or all of their childcare expenses paid by the state. This measure is retroactive to be effective as of April 1, 2020. For more information, visit https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/OECD/Pages/For-Communities.aspx.
  • Correspondingly, the state will pay 30% above the usual reimbursements rates to emergency child care centers and homes. Previously, the state instituted a new permit for child care centers serving essential workers. More information on this program may be found at https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/OECD/Pages/For-Communities.aspx.

HEALTH

  • Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, has continued to stress the importance of staying home and maintaining social distancing. This warning comes both before and after Illinois started seeing a cluster of COVID-19 cases in nursing homes, mental health and developmental disability facilities, and prisons. Each of these places demonstrate difficulty in implementing separation, and thus a high number of individuals are testing positive for coronavirus. For guidance on how to protect facilities such as these, visit http://www.dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/diseases-a-z-list/coronavirus/long-term-care-guidance.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES

  • The Department of Public Health, Veterans’ Affairs, and Human Services have each worked to provide specific guidance for residents in an effort to help slow the spread. For example, the Department of Public Health provides community guidance for several types of persons and institutions on how they can mitigate the spread of the virus. For more information from the Department of Public Health, visit http://www.dph.illinois.gov/covid19. Additionally, Veterans’ Affairs is still providing online and telephonic services, and Illinois Department of Human Services is providing frequently updated coronavirus information and online assistance. For a link to the Illinois Veterans’ Affairs website, visit https://www2.illinois.gov/veterans/Pages/default.aspx. To access information from the Illinois Department of Human Services, visit http://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx?item=123118.

HeplerBroom attorney Emilee M. Bramstedt contributed to this blog post.