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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the | ||||||
| 3 | novel coronavirus that has resulted in a worldwide pandemic | ||||||
| 4 | infecting almost 3 million people around the globe and taking | ||||||
| 5 | 200,000 lives; and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, Illinois has battled the virus valiantly, with | ||||||
| 7 | 803,973 tests performed so far and the number growing every | ||||||
| 8 | day; and
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| 9 | WHEREAS, The State's efforts and response were led by the | ||||||
| 10 | Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, Dr. Ngozi | ||||||
| 11 | Ezike, who joined the department after serving Cook County | ||||||
| 12 | Health for more than 15 years; and
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| 13 | WHEREAS, In Dr. Ezike's last role with Cook County Health, | ||||||
| 14 | she served as medical director at the Cook County Juvenile | ||||||
| 15 | Detention Center, the largest single site juvenile detention | ||||||
| 16 | facility in the country; and
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| 17 | WHEREAS, During Dr. Ezike's time with the Cook County | ||||||
| 18 | Juvenile Detention Center, she was instrumental in creating and | ||||||
| 19 | implementing the facility's health policies as the first step | ||||||
| 20 | of many for coming out of federal receivership and achieving | ||||||
| 21 | national accreditation for the detention center; and
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| 1 | WHEREAS, Dr. Ezike has previously served as the medical | ||||||
| 2 | director for the Austin Health Center on the West Side of | ||||||
| 3 | Chicago, where she engaged with the community through health | ||||||
| 4 | initiatives involving obesity, diabetes, and breastfeeding; | ||||||
| 5 | and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, Dr. Ezike graduated with honors from Harvard | ||||||
| 7 | College with a concentration in chemistry; she earned her | ||||||
| 8 | medical degree from the University of California at San Diego; | ||||||
| 9 | and
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| 10 | WHEREAS, Dr. Ezike is a national policy advisor on juvenile | ||||||
| 11 | correctional health topics, and she has presented at numerous | ||||||
| 12 | local and national conferences for medical professionals and | ||||||
| 13 | youth audiences alike; and
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| 14 | WHEREAS, Much of the State's response to the COVID-19 | ||||||
| 15 | pandemic has been guided by Dr. Ezike's leadership; she has | ||||||
| 16 | been a strong, steadfast, and empathetic voice to the entire | ||||||
| 17 | State; with her cheerful yet resolved demeanor, she has bridged | ||||||
| 18 | gaps to enhance connectivity as the State battles this | ||||||
| 19 | pandemic; therefore, be it
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| 20 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 21 | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
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| 1 | we commend Dr. Ngozi Ezike on her continued leadership and | ||||||
| 2 | commitment to the Department of Public Health and the State of | ||||||
| 3 | Illinois during the COVID-19 pandemic; and be it further
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| 4 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 5 | presented to Dr. Ezike as an expression of our esteem and | ||||||
| 6 | respect.
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