The Chicago Board of Elections reported 59,572 ballots still awaiting processing after the Nov. 3 midterm election, including 50,721 unreturned mail-in ballots. Processing of vote-by-mail and provisional ballots continues through Nov. 17 under Illinois law.
The American Medical Association and 61 healthcare organizations are urging Congress to pass four Medicare reforms before year’s end, warning that physician payment has dropped roughly 33 percent since 2001 when adjusted for inflation. The coalition is seeking a payment update extension, new stability legislation, a delayed fee reduction and capped MIPS penalties.
Existing-home sales fell 5.5 percent in October to a 16-year low of 3.75 million annualized units, as the average 30-year mortgage rate climbed to 7.33 percent, the National Association of Realtors reported. The national median home price rose 0.4 percent to $416,700, marking the 40th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains.
The American Hospital Association has issued an urgent advisory warning hospitals to immediately patch a critical vulnerability in SailPoint IdentityIQ identity management software that has already been exploited to gain remote access to at least one healthcare organization. The AHA also flagged multiple vulnerabilities in Fortinet products on the same day.
Chicago-based United Airlines announced that more than half of its daily flights now carry SpaceX Starlink satellite internet, with coverage expected to reach nearly 64 percent of flights by year’s end. The milestone comes as the airline prepares for a Thanksgiving travel period it projects will carry more than 6.6 million passengers.
The American Medical Association and the Federation of State Medical Boards released a joint report calling for modernized accountability standards for AI in medical practice, warning that existing regulatory and liability frameworks were not designed with AI in mind. The report follows a September forum that gathered more than 200 physicians, policymakers and technology developers in Washington, D.C.
Maine Township High School District 207 has proposed a 3.13 percent property tax levy increase for 2026, bringing the total to $180,835,800, with a public hearing scheduled for Dec. 7 at the district’s Park Ridge Administration Center. The district serves roughly 6,000 students across Maine South, Maine East and Maine West high schools.
United Airlines announced it is blocking third-party AI agents from its booking and customer service platforms, warning that such tools risk exposing sensitive customer data and could violate FAA and DOT regulations. The Chicago-based carrier becomes one of the first major airlines to draw a hard line against AI-powered travel tools acting on behalf of passengers.
Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong was unanimously named the National League MVP, receiving all 30 first-place votes to become the first unanimous MVP winner in Cubs franchise history. The 24-year-old hit .280 with 45 home runs and 41 stolen bases in 2026, joining an elite group of just seven players in major league history to achieve a 40-homer, 40-steal season.
A Northwestern University study found that the EPA gave more weight to economic arguments from the trucking industry than to public health and climate concerns when developing heavy-duty vehicle emissions standards, with the final rules coming in softer than originally proposed. Researchers used AI tools to analyze nearly 5 million words of public comments submitted during the rulemaking process.