Cook County Health and Hospitals Committee Meeting - October 20, 2026

The Cook County Health and Hospitals Committee met on October 20, 2026, at approximately 1 p.m. with a quorum present. The Chair announced flu and COVID vaccinations for commissioners and staff on Thursday, October 22, 2026, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Room 885. No written agenda or minutes were available; this summary is based on the transcript, which ends during the health department presentation.

Procedural Actions

• Commissioner Britton moved, seconded by Chairman Daly, to allow remote participation by commissioners not present in the chamber; the motion was approved by roll call with 10 ayes and 7 absent.
• No additions to the agenda were made.
• Vice Chair Naya moved, seconded by Chairman Daly, approval of the minutes from the Health and Hospitals Committee meeting held on September 22, 2026 (Item 26-2636); the motion was approved by voice vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Reverend Don Abram was registered as a speaker but did not respond when called.
• George Blakemore, the only speaker, expressed opposition to undocumented immigrants receiving health care, services, contracts, and jobs in Cook County, arguing they compete with native Black residents. He criticized Black elected officials for supporting this, and raised concerns about emergency room conditions, floating nurses, and enforcement of speaking-time limits at meetings.

Discussion Items

• Commissioner Miller, the main sponsor of Item 23-3815, spoke in favor of continuing regular briefings on COVID-19 and other diseases of concern. She stated that the federal government is "not following science" and "not giving us guidance," that residents need a trusted local source, and that public health does not take a break. She thanked Dr. Joshi for providing evidence-based data down to the zip-code and community level.
• Vice Chair Naya moved to defer Item 23-3815, which requested an update from Cook County Health and the Cook County Department of Public Health on COVID-19 and other diseases of concern, immunization, and mitigation plans in suburban Cook County. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Miller and approved by voice vote.
• Dr. Kieran Joshi presented the update for the Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH):
  • Respiratory viruses: the season is very early; flu is starting to trend up; there were two ICU admissions for COVID-19 the prior week; an updated COVID-19 vaccine has been released and vaccination was encouraged.
  • Measles: a traveler diagnosed with measles entered Chicago on an Amtrak train in September, exposing dozens of people at Union Station and on the train. CCDPH contact-traced and investigated 21 suburban contacts, with quarantine required for at least 21 days from last exposure when immunity could not be confirmed.
  • Community vaccination: immunization rates in suburban Cook County have declined over roughly the last decade, but increased last year. Clinics are being held at five suburban ACHN sites, and campaigns such as "Every Vaccine Counts" and "Spread Facts, Not Flu" are underway. Dr. Joshi described vaccine misinformation as a "tsunami or tidal wave."
  • West Nile / mosquito abatement district coordination: CCDPH is coordinating with four mosquito abatement districts following an assessment requested by a resolution sponsored by Commissioner Degnan.
  • Dr. Joshi indicated he would speak about "plague" as a recent hot topic, but the transcript ends before those details were provided.

Key Outcomes

• Remote participation and minutes approval passed unanimously.
• Item 23-3815 was deferred by voice vote.
• CCDPH will continue its vaccination clinics, public vaccination campaigns, measles contact tracing, and mosquito abatement coordination. Further details from the presentation were not available because the transcript ends mid-presentation.