Carle Health has announced it will discontinue its Medicare Advantage plans under Health Alliance by December 31, 2025, marking a significant shift in its insurance operations and affecting over 33,000 members. This comes just months after the health system revealed it would also be phasing out its broader Health Alliance insurance plans by the end of this year.
Champaign-Urbana continues to ride a wave of economic strength as the area posted one of the lowest unemployment rates in the state for April 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Illinois Department of Employment Security.
With the 2024-2025 High School sports season close to an end (baseball, softball, soccer, among a few others still competing) I thought it necessary to send out an ode to the local high school sports teams and a shout out to those who made the season possible.
A new measure aimed at reducing racial disparities in maternal health care is headed to Governor JB Pritzker’s desk after receiving final approval in the Illinois Senate this week.
NCMEC has assisted in the recovery of more than 450,000 missing children cases, achieving a 91% recovery rate in 2024. NCMEC marked 40 years of service in 2024 and has been responsible for the groundbreaking 1981 symposium on missing and murdered children, and the organization with the help of civil rights advocate Ozell Sutton to missing children featured on milk cartons.
University of Illinois Extension, in partnership with the Rantoul Public Library is offering a free workshop on Thursday, May 30, at 1:00 p.m. The workshop is led by University of Illinois Extension Nutrition and Wellness Educator Rachel Mannen. The library is located at 106 W. Flessner Ave., Rantoul, IL. This workshop will introduce participants to making bread from scratch. This includes mixing, kneading, shaping and baking.
Schedule a time to give now by visiting RedCrossBlood.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS or by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App. Donors who give by May 31 will receive a solar lantern and will be entered to win a U.S. trip for two. Full details can be found at RedCrossBlood.org/May. DOnors from June 1 to 30 will get a $15 Amazon.com gift card by email and will be entered to win one of two $7,000 gift cards. Visit RedCrossBlood.org/June.
More than 20 firefighting units from across Central Illinois responded to a large fire Tuesday night at the former Chanute Air Force Base in Rantoul. The 3-alarm call went out at 7:30 p.m., prompting crews from Rantoul, Champaign, Paxton, Ludlow, Thomasboro, Gifford, and Sangamon Valley to the scene.
Community advocate and Above & Beyond One Winter Night award recipient Scott Burnsmier inspired attendees with his heartfelt story and message of hope during a recent event hosted by C-U at Home, a local nonprofit working to support individuals experiencing homelessness.
In a major move to protect one of Illinois’ most vital water sources, the General Assembly on Tuesday passed Senate Bill 1723, which bans carbon sequestration over, under, or through the Mahomet Aquifer, a critical drinking water source for up to 1 million residents in central Illinois.