Good afternoon, Chicago ✶
A few weeks ago, the outgoing Biden administration announced the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule.
The move banned unpaid medical bills from appearing on credit reports, which can bar people from obtaining car loans, small-business loans and mortgages.
In today’s newsletter, we’ll introduce you to a mother who is hailing the rule as a game-changer in her journey to buying a new home for herself and her son.
Plus, we’ve got reporting on the Trump administration reportedly rescinding its federal freeze, a look at one restaurateur paying homage to his Polish roots and more community news you need to know.
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Removing medical debt from credit reports opens door to economic opportunity
Reporting by Rafaela Jinich
Home ownership hurdles: For years, Octavia Byars’ dreams of owning a home were stalled by unpaid medical bills. The single mother from south suburban Calumet City found her credit score dragged down by thousands of dollars in medical debt from treating her son, Tremaine Byars Jr., who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy.
Common story: For Byars and millions of other Americans, medical debt has been a barrier to financial stability. “I tried to buy a house, but they told me everything I needed to do was get the medical debt removed,” Byars said.
Removing medical debt: Stories like Byars’ are why the Biden administration in its final days unveiled a federal rule aimed at removing medical debt from credit reports. The rule is expected to help 15 million people and excludes $49 billion from showing up on credit reports. It is unclear whether President Donald Trump will reverse the rule.
Financial forecast: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau estimates this change will raise credit scores by 20 points on average, potentially helping more Americans qualify for mortgages and other loans previously out of reach.
Key point: Despite praise for the rule, experts caution that it doesn’t address the root cause of medical debt: the country’s health care system. “People will still owe these bills, and hospitals that rely on payments may struggle financially. It could lead to unintended consequences down the road,” said Todd Christensen, a housing counseling and education manager at MoneyFit.
‘Weight off’: For families like Byars’, the rule is a lifeline. Now renting in Calumet City, she dreams of finally buying a home and regaining financial stability. “This will take a lot of weight off my shoulders,” Byars said.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
- Federal freeze walked back: President Donald Trump’s budget office rescinded an order Wednesday freezing spending on federal grants after it sparked widespread confusion and legal challenges across the country, the Associated Press reports. The legal battle around federal spending is just beginning.
- If Medicaid goes: Beyond Tuesday’s Medicaid portal outage, Democrats fear there’s an even greater risk to the federal program that lower-income Illinoisans rely on for health care: a federal budget cut that could lead to more than 900,000 people losing coverage
- Remembering Gene Schroeder: Before his death, Mr. Schroeder, a former Chicago Bear, was the oldest former NFL football player in the U.S. He died Tuesday at age 95. “[He] loved his family, loved his life, loved his career,” his daughter told the Sun-Times.
- Property tax bills coming: Cook County property owners will soon receive the first installment of their 2024 tax bill.
- Griffin museum restoration: The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry will restore its original south entrance as part of a major renovation, thanks to a $10 million grant from the Driehaus Foundation.
- Pitchfork Festival co-founder reflects: Chicago-based festival co-founder Mike Reed discussed why the nearly 20-year-old extravaganza shuttered, citing escalating costs and “compromises” in bookings from the fest’s new owner, media conglomerate Condé Nast.
LUNAR NEW YEAR 🐍
Where to celebrate Lunar New Year in Chicago
List by Cindy Hernandez
Communities across the Chicago area are gearing up to celebrate the Year of the Snake with events that started last weekend and continue over the next few weeks.
Here are a few ways you can ring in the Year of the Snake.
Lunar New Year at Navy Pier
Saturday, 1 p.m.
📍Navy Pier, Aon Grand Ballroom, 840 E. Grand Ave.
This afternoon music festival will feature local artists, dancers and musicians from the Asian American diaspora.
Admission: Free
CAMOC Lunar New Year Party
Saturday, 2 p.m.
📍Chinese American Museum of Chicago, 238 W. 23rd St.
Welcome the Year of the Snake with a buffet-style lunch, live performances, games and prizes, and traditional paper-cutting and calligraphy.
Admission: $8+
Argyle Community Healing and Placekeeping Project
Feb. 8, 11 a.m.
📍1132-1134 W. Argyle St.
HAIBAYÔ is collaborating with Qideas Plant Shop to host an immersive, educational botanical and flower installation and exhibit before the big parade. Ăn Chơi Kitchen will host a Lunar New Year Food Talk and tasting.
Admission: Free
Argyle Lunar New Year Parade
Feb. 8, 1 p.m.
📍Argyle Street and Sheridan Avenue
The annual Lunar New Year Parade in Uptown features local community groups, cultural institutions, dancers and performers.
Admission: Free
Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade
Feb. 9, 1 p.m.
📍24th Street and Wentworth Avenue
The parade returns with traditional dragon and lion dancing teams, colorful floats, marching bands and marching groups.
Admission: Free
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Wurst Behavior in Irving Park pays homage to Polish tradition
Reporting by Dorothy Hernandez
Until he was 18, Artur “Art” Wnorowski would visit his family’s farm in Poland, where for three months he would help his grandfather harvest grains, beans and potatoes, butcher pigs and smoke kielbasa in the basement smoker.
The smoker was connected to the clay kitchen on the main floor, filling the entire house with the aroma of kielbasa.
“Being there in the summertime for the harvest season and making sausage was a part of everyday living, smoking ham, surviving,” Wnorowski said. “That was fun. I didn’t think much about it while we were doing it. It was just Grandpa making sausages.”
That tradition is on display at Wurst Behavior in Irving Park, which Wnorowski and his wife and partner, Gosia Pieniazek, opened last fall. The couple also owns Pierogi Kitchen in Wicker Park, where the housemade kielbasa was almost as popular as the eponymous homemade dumplings.
The Irving Park restaurant pays homage not just to the partners’ Polish culture but also to the Old World butcher shop traditions for which Chicago was known in the 1950s — photos of different shops adorn the restaurant walls — and offerings like the Chicago dog are nods to their second home.
At the heart of it all is the kielbasa, the foundation for all of the encased meats.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Which Chicago restaurant best represents your culture? Be sure to tell us what they get right.
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Written by: Matt Moore
Editor: Esther Bergdahl
Copy editor: Angie Myers