WBEZ’s Weekly News Recap, July 31, 2026

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
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**SPEAKER_2** (0:27)
We need affordable things to be able to feed our kids. Save a Lot ended its agreement to run the stores with local operator Yellow Banana over financial concerns.

**Brandon Johnson** (0:36)
I'm certainly committed to finding ways in which we can ensure that groceries still exist in neighborhoods that have historically not had access to fresh food.

**SPEAKER_4** (0:43)
Welch's office slow walked investigating allegations made against Benton.

**SPEAKER_5** (0:48)
I have urged publicly the speaker to make sure that all of the information is out there.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (0:54)
Hey Chicago, I'm Sasha-Ann Simons, and this is In the Loop.
And it's our Weekly News Recap. A report with details on former Democratic state representative Harry Benton's sexual harassment case will be released today. Residents on the South and West sides are being impacted by the closures of multiple Save a Lot grocery stores. The CTA announced new steps it's taking to deter crime on public transit, plus the Chicago mayoral race officially kicks off.

**SPEAKER_7** (1:27)
It is off to the races. Mayor Brandon Johnson has started collecting the signatures needed to get on the ballot.

**SPEAKER_1** (1:33)
You've got Mike Quigley, representative, US representative.

**SPEAKER_5** (1:36)
Suzanne, I'm in those. You know, she's very strong. She's raised a couple million dollars. She's been working very hard.

**SPEAKER_8** (1:42)
Alexi Janulius would be way out in front, supposing he runs. Anthony Driver sent a letter to the Alders asking if the November 12th deadline could be extended until Chicagoans choose a new mayor.

**Brandon Johnson** (1:54)
This notion that somehow that our leadership has to be placed on hold based upon a political cycle, I think it just speaks to the motives that some people operate under.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (2:04)
Now, before we get into the conversation, WBEZ politics editor, Dave McKinney, who is one of our panelists today, he joins me now to talk about a new Illinois law that will require hospitals to file more financial information with state regulators. Hey, Dave, good to have you on.

**Dave McKinney** (2:17)
Sasha, good to see you.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (2:19)
So there are some concerns, new concerns rather, about the details that are in this 500 page bill, so do tell.

**Dave McKinney** (2:26)
Well, I mean, this is sort of the classic Springfield play, where it was a gigantic bill that dealt with Medicaid. It was an omnibus bill that included a bazillion different things that pertained to Medicaid.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (2:36)
Okay.

**Dave McKinney** (2:37)
And one of them that, and this is something that was uncovered by our excellent health care reporter, Kristin Schorsch. She went digging and looked at this, and this provision that deals with requiring hospitals across the state to divulge more about their finances to the state of Illinois. Now, why that matters? We've had a couple of big hospitals that have closed in Chicago recently, West Suburban Hospital and Weiss.
And people around those hospitals, I mean, they have been, it's just been an enormous headache for them.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (3:12)
Oh, for sure. And the news sudden for people who relied on the hospitals.

**Dave McKinney** (3:17)
It was a shock for folks. And I think what this is aimed to do is to give the state of Illinois a little maybe advance warning. If some of these hospital groups that exist throughout the state are having trouble, the state would recognize that.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (3:30)
So you're saying the bill was intended to support these at-risk hospitals and the patients that they serve. But an interesting piece of this new law is that Illinois hospitals' financial information wouldn't be made available to the public. So how are community activists responding to that part?

**Dave McKinney** (3:47)
Well, Sasha, you're right. This new transparency only goes so far. And if you remember the public, well, you're out of luck. And that's frustrating to people. I mean, Kristen, when she was reporting this, even talked to legislators who cast votes in support of this bill. When they saw this provision, they're like, well, wait a minute. We didn't realize this was in there. We think that it should be made public. And public meaning that everybody should see it, neighbors, the users of these hospitals.
And so that might be something that comes down the pike later on in Springfield, as people kind of digest the impact of this.

**Sasha-Ann Simons** (4:23)