Erin Allen: Good morning, welcome to Monday. I'm Erin Allen and this is The Rundown. 

If you’re the type to get your voting done early, you already got into our voter guides at WBEZ.org, and you know who you’re going for later this month. You’ll be happy to know that early voting and vote-by-mail is already underway for Chicago’s municipal election. My colleague Tony Arnold is reporting that more than 190,000 people have already applied to vote-by-mail. And the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners says that of those applications around 8,000 ballots have been turned in. Anyone else who wants to cast their ballot by mail or by drop box must apply with the elections board by Thursday, February 23rd. Once you get your ballot, there are two current drop box locations downtown. One is at 69 West Washington between Clark and Dearborn. And the other is at the voting super site at Clark and Lake. More drop boxes are scheduled to be available next week. But if you’re casting your ballot by mail, you have to have it postmarked by election day on February 28th.

A few months ago, my colleague Adora Namiggade talked on The Rundown about the aging water infrastructure in Dixmoor, a community just south of Chicago. Residents there have been dealing with inconsistent water access and unclean water for years. Here’s an update on that: The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District commissioners recently passed out more than 20,000 water bottles in Dixmoor. Their President, Kari Steele, says her organization started a clean water fund last September. They raised more than $2,000 to buy 840 cases of bottled water for Dixmoor.

Kari Steele: We wanted to make sure that the residents in Dixmoor just have that water on reserve in case they need it, because we know as we repair aging infrastructure, there can always be a moment when you need clean water.

Erin Allen: The reclamation district will continue collecting bottled water for other residents in Cook County who need it. 

And another update on a tense water situation on the South Side of Chicago. Residents of an apartment complex in South Shore are saying they’ve been without heat and water for weeks. My colleague Michael Puente spoke with one of the tenants, Lindara Denton. She’s lived there for nine years, and she said when the building’s boiler stopped working December 31st, she was provided with two space heaters. But by that time, the water had already stopped working a few days prior. She and a dozen other tenants were eventually moved into a hotel. But they still don’t know if and when they will be able to return to their homes. Denton says it’s stressful every night not knowing where she’s gonna stay.

Lindara Denton: Where are we sleeping tonight because we have no place to go? It is unacceptable.

Erin Allen: The landlord is Catalyst Realty, and they didn’t respond to a request for comment.

During the pandemic, Congress continued Medicaid coverage for folks to receive benefits even if they became ineligible in that time. But that expanded access will end on March 31st, and the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services is predicting that more than 300,000 residents could lose health insurance. Sergio Obregon is a special assistant to the HFS director. He says the department is working to minimize the number of people who will lose coverage, if they end up becoming ineligible.

Sergio Obregon: We have information on forms if somebody were to lose coverage that would give them information on how they can seek other health insurance opportunities either through an employer or the Affordable Care Act.

Erin Allen: Obregon is saying people on Medicaid should update their addresses to ensure they get their renewal form as soon as possible, so they can start the next stage in the process. 

And a few quick hits before we get to the weather. Chicago poet J. Ivy won a Grammy over the weekend in a category he helped to create, Best Spoken Word Poetry Album. Ivy is the first winner of this honor for his album ‘The Poet Who Sat by the Door.’ And Beyoncé broke a record for the most lifetime Grammys last night. She also added a second Chicago date to her Renaissance tour. She'll be a Soldier Field July 22nd and 23rd. The pre-sale for those ticket starts today. 

As for the weather is partly cloudy today and we're in the coldest part of the day right now. Temperatures in the mid twenties. It's going up to the low forties this afternoon and staying that way for the rest of the night, you can expect highs in the low forties most of the week.

And that's it for The Rundown right now. Coming up this afternoon, we're getting into the origins of fat phobia. 

Sarah Stark: Fat phobia is fundamentally wrapped up in anti-blackness and racism. 

Erin Allen: I'll talk with my colleague Sarah Stark about that and what anti fatness looks like now, at the doctor's office, at the gym and at work. That's coming up today at two on The Rundown. I'm Erin Allen, I'll talk to you then.

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