Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker has issued an Executive Order that will require most residents to stay at home through April 8th. It is in response to the coronavirus threat which is seeing the number of Illinois cases rising.
Although it is called a ‘stay at home’ order, the Governor says there are many things that people will still be able to do….
{”You’ll still be able to leave your house to go to the grocery store to get food. You’ll still be able to visit a pharmacy, go to a medical office or hospital, or to gas up your car at a gas station,” said the Governor. ”You’ll still be able to go running and hiking, and walk your dog. Many, many people will still go to work. For the vast majority of you already taking precautions your lives will not change very much.”}
But the Governor says there will be changes….
{”All non-essential businesses must stop operating. If you can work from home and aren’t already doing so, now is the time when you must. The heroes of this moment – our healthcare workers, first-responders, law enforcement officers, and the individuals and organizations like the Illinois AFL-CIO and other workers, who keep our grocery stores and pharmacies running cannot stay home. We need you,” said the Governor. ”This Executive Order is fundamentally about the rest of us, and what we can do to support the people on the front lines of this fight, and the people most vulnerable to its consequences.”}
And Governor Pritzker added other steps are also being taken under the emergency order….
{We’re working with municipalities across the state to halt all evictions. We need our local leaders to help ensure our families do not lose their homes. I’m also directing additional resources to organizations across the state to serve those experiencing homelessness,” said the Governor.
”For our students, your school district will continue to provide you with meals, and we will back them up in this. I wish I could stand up here and tell you when your schools will safely re-open, but that is not an answer that I have at this time. We’re postponing our tentative re-opening date statewide until April 8th, and we’ll continue to update you with new information as we have it.}
