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Cook County recognizes Lupus and ALS awareness months after testimony from advocates
Summary
Cook County commissioners formally acknowledged Lupus Awareness Month and ALS Awareness Month after multiple residents and advocates described long diagnostic delays, serious health impacts and the need for services; advocates urged outreach and support for caregivers.
Dozens of Cook County residents and health advocates addressed commissioners during public testimony as the board marked May as Lupus Awareness Month and recognized ALS Awareness Month.
"We are truly honored to be recognized during Lupus Awareness Month," said Lisa Closlow, executive director of the Lupus Society of Illinois. Closlow told the board lupus is a chronic disease that disproportionately affects women ages 15 to 44 and highlighted the society’s free support services. Kimberly Spike Walker, who said she has lived with lupus for 30 years, described organ damage and neurological effects and urged continued awareness and support.
Alex Meichner, vice president of policy and advocacy at the ALS Association, thanked the board for recognizing ALS Awareness Month and said about "500 individuals are currently living in Cook County with ALS," emphasizing the disease’s toll and the need for caregiver support. Meichner outlined recent drug approvals that have offered new hope for a small fraction of people with certain genetic subtypes but stressed that the majority of ALS patients still lack transformative treatments.
Members of the board also presented a formal resolution acknowledging Lupus Awareness Month and May 10 as World Lupus Day and recognized organizations that provide education, advocacy and services to people living with lupus. The resolution summary cited CDC-based prevalence estimates and noted that lupus disproportionately affects Black, Latina, Asian American, Native American and Pacific Islander women.
The advocacy and testimony reflected both individual experiences — including long diagnostic delays and the daily challenges of complex autoimmune disease — and broader requests for public outreach, earlier diagnosis and stronger caregiver supports. The board approved the consent calendar containing multiple ceremonial resolutions; the transcript does not include a recorded roll-call tally for those consent items.
