Good afternoon! It’s Monday, and I just remembered I left a sandwich on my desk before I left the newsroom last March. Here’s what you need to know today.

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1. Chicago is once again averaging more than 400 new coronavirus cases per day

Mayor Lori Lightfoot today said “the last thing” she wants to do is revive business restrictions as the city’s positivity rate and case numbers increase after months of declines, sparking concerns from health experts that the city could be seeing the beginning of a new surge.

The city is reporting a seven-day average of 438 cases per day, up 28% from last week’s average. The positivity rate has also climbed to 4% from last week’s 3.1%. [COVID Dashboard]

Dr. Allison Arwady, the city’s public health commissioner, last week said hitting an average of 400 new cases per day would be a “sign of real concern.”

Lightfoot said the recent increase in cases is being fueled by people between the ages of 18 and 39, and a significant number of infections are coming from the city’s North and Northwest sides.

The mayor’s comments come as Chicago moves forward with vaccinations for people who are in the 1C group, which includes people with underlying conditions and essential workers. Lightfoot also announced a new vaccination site for union workers. [WBEZ]

Many states are reporting a rise in infections that experts attribute to more contagious virus variants and local officials relaxing restrictions. Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, went off script during a COVID-19 update today and gave an emotional plea urging Americans to follow safety guidelines.

“Right now, I’m scared,” Walensky said. [Axios]

Shortly afterward, President Joe Biden said states should pause their reopening efforts. [New York Times]

In Illinois, almost 70% of people aged 65 and over have received at least one shot, reports the Chicago Tribune. That’s great news, but rising hospitalizations and cases throughout the state have stalled Gov. JB Pritzker’s reopening plans. [Chicago Tribune]

Meanwhile, the CDC announced today that vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna were 90% effective in a “real world” study. [NBC News]

2. Loretto Hospital investigates home vaccinations given by partner in clinical trials

Chicago’s Loretto Hospital is investigating how some of its doses were given at home to family members of a west suburban businessman overseeing the hospital’s clinical trial of the Pfizer vaccine, reports WBEZ’s Dan Mihalopoulos.

A hospital spokeswoman said in a statement that the subject of their newest inquiry into vaccinations was Ali Ahmed, the president of Oak Brook-based Affinity Health. Ahmed and his company have partnered with Loretto on a widely touted clinical vaccine trial, and in January he took 10 vaccines from the hospital for family members and others in the western suburbs, according to the statement. [WBEZ]

Meanwhile, Illinois state Rep. Camille Lilly, D-Chicago, gave the embattled West Side hospital lists of 85 people to receive COVID-19 vaccinations, reports Crain’s Chicago Business.

Lilly serves as an executive at Loretto, and the vaccinations raise even more questions over whether the hospital prioritized well-connected individuals over people who were eligible for shots.

A spokeswoman for Loretto denied the existence of Lilly’s lists, which were obtained by Crain’s. [Crain’s]

3. Jury hears opening arguments in George Floyd killing

The trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin began today, about 10 months after the killing of George Floyd set off protests against racial inequality across the nation.

Chauvin is charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The trial is expected to last about four weeks.

During his opening remarks, Special Assistant Attorney General Jerry Blackwell played a bystander video of Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck. “You can believe your eyes, that it’s homicide — it’s murder,” Blackwell told jurors.

As NPR notes, the outcome of the trial could be determined by several legal questions, such as do legal protections for police absolve Chauvin of responsibility for Floyd’s death? [NPR]

4. Coronavirus most likely came from animals, according to WHO report

The likeliest scenario: The virus first emerged in bats and was spread to humans through another animal.

That’s according to a report from the World Health Organization that was obtained by The Associated Press. The report said it’s “extremely unlikely” the virus escaped from a lab in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

A team of scientists from around the world were dispatched to China earlier this year to find clues about the origins of the coronavirus. U.S. officials expressed concern about the investigation, arguing the World Health Organization gave Beijing too much power in shaping the narrative of the outbreak in Wuhan, which Chinese officials originally sought to cover up. [AP]

5. GOP increasingly targets the rights of transgender Americans

State legislatures across the nation have proposed a record number of anti-transgender bills this year, reports NPR.

Among the harshest is a measure in Alabama that would make it a felony to provide transition-related medical treatment, like puberty blockers and hormones, to minors. Twenty other states have proposed similar legislation.

“I worked really hard to be able to transition,” said 17-year-old Syrus Hall from Mobile, Ala. “I dealt with bullying at school, and people being mean to me just because I exist. If I can deal with that, I know who I am. I’m not going to go back.” [NPR]

Republican state lawmakers are also pushing and passing bills that ban transgender athletes from participating in girls’ sports. [New York Times]

Here’s what else is happening

• The Biden administration announced plans to expand wind farms along the East Coast. [Washington Post]
• One of the most consequential union elections is underway in Alabama, where workers are deciding whether to become Amazon’s first unionized warehouse. [NPR]
• Chicago officials are preparing to provide $80 million in rental assistance. [WBEZ]
• Lollapalooza co-founder Perry Farrell said he hopes the festival will take place in early August “in one capacity or another.” [Chicago Tribune]

Oh, and one more thing …

An asteroid named Apophis won’t collide into Earth for at least 100 years, NASA recently announced.

Apophis was discovered in 2004, and astronomers originally believed it would get extremely close to the planet in 2029 or maybe 2036. One prediction estimated 10 million people would die if the 1,100-foot asteroid crashed into Earth.

You’ll be able to see Apophis on April 13, 2029, when it is expected to be just 20,000 miles away from the planet’s surface. [NPR]

Tell me something good …

The weather is getting nicer, and I’d like to know what outdoor activities you’re doing that are safe and fun.

Me? I took a drive along the lakefront and literally got a sunburn because I’ve been staying indoors so long that I look like one of those underground morlocks from The Time Machine.

Feel free to email me at therundown@wbez.org or tweet me at @whuntah.

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