Month: August 2020

Kansas’ ‘natural experiment’ shows masks work, state health official says

Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas secretary of health, showed a chart about mask usage on Wednesday that showed counties with mask mandates had COVID-19 rates that were declining, while counties without mask mandates were flat. (From KDHE news conference)
Wyandotte County reported 4,673 cumulative positive COVID-19 cases at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, an increase of 73 since Tuesday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 webpage. There were no new deaths; the cumulative total remained at 96. (From UG COVID-19 website)

Masks work to prevent the spread of COVID-19, according to Dr. Lee Norman, and the “natural experiment” in Kansas shows it.

Dr. Norman, Kansas secretary of health, showed a chart during a Wednesday afternoon news conference. The chart had two lines, one for counties with mandatory mask orders and one for counties without them.

Although it wasn’t planned to be a scientific experiment or a trial, results from non-mask counties (the control group) were compared to results from counties with mandatory mask orders (the experimental counties). The results showed that masks work, Dr. Norman said.

There are 15 counties with mask mandates, including Wyandotte County, and about 90 Kansas counties without them, he said. The 15 counties account for two-thirds of the population in the state, and are mostly urban areas where people may come into contact with others more frequently.

Dr. Norman’s chart showed a significant decline in COVID-19 rates in counties with mask orders, he said, while counties without mask mandates had a flat rate. The governor’s mask order went into effect July 3; in Wyandotte County, masks have been mandated since June 30 by local health officials.

Dr. Norman’s chart covered July 12 through Aug. 3. It compared the number of cases per 100,000 in each county in the two groups, on a 7-day average. There is an improvement seen in counties where mask-wearing is mandatory, he said.

Since a vaccine is not available yet, masks are the only physical tools available at this moment to fight COVID-19, Dr. Norman said.

Dr. Norman said the Kansas Department of Health and Environment is sharing the stories of COVID-19 victims, with their permission, on a series of videos to help people learn more about the illness. Some patients were asymptomatic, and others had to be on a ventilator for a period of time, he said.

He said he has talked to some COVID-19 patients who had prolonged symptoms for months after having recovered from COVID.

The understanding of COVID-19 has been changing. For instance, it used to be an anomaly to find children who were hospitalized with it, he said. But now, it is more common, and there are child COVID-19 patients at Children’s Mercy Hospital frequently, according to Dr. Norman.

One student, aged 19, from Dodge City, had very mild COVID-19 symptoms in May, but this past weekend, he was bedridden with severe headache and fatigue, he said. He has had those symptoms since being hospitalized in May.

Another patient, aged 42, an athlete, is 125 days out from being diagnosed with COVID-19, and is still experiencing burning in the lungs and shortness of breath, he said.

It is humbling that they know so little about this disease, Dr. Norman said. They are still learning.

“I know wearing a mask is not the most comfortable thing to do,” Dr. Norman said. However, they’re getting a lot of aggregated data solidifying the belief that masks work, he said.

They are learning about the biology of the disease, and he said it is becoming clear that they should do everything possible to push the curve of the disease down as much as possible especially before the start of the school year.

Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, said it will take effort from everyone to get the state’s positive test rate of 9 percent down before schools can reopen and before a vaccine is available.

At the news conference on Wednesday morning at the University of Kansas Health System, doctors warning against vaping, and there are some reasons to believe that some who vapes may be more susceptible to COVID-19.

Dr. Matthias Salathe, chair of internal medicine at KU Medical Center and pulmonologist at KU Health System, said vaping can be just as dangerous as smoking. Some of the vaping patients now in the hospital have lungs that look like COVID-19 damage but are a different illness, according to Dr. Salathe. Vaping can cause lung injury, he said.

Dr. Amanda Olinger, director of pediatric services at KU Health System Marillac Campus, said adults vape and smoke on personal and private levels, in general, while for adolescents, it is a highly social event. They get together to smoke or vape with friends.

In the past, she’s seen infections transfer from one to another through vaping, she said. Last fall some mononucleosis cases were linked back to vaping and sharing, according to Dr. Olinger.

With teens in close proximity, not wearing a mask, and passing a vaping tube from one to another, breathing through it, that increases the risk of infection, according to Dr. Olinger.

It’s hard to get through to teens if they can’t see immediate harmful effects, she said.

Dr. Salathe was very optimistic a vaccine for the virus will be available by the first of the year. Because of the fast-tracking process, future vaccines will be available much quicker, he believes.

Dr. Hawkinson said there were 26 COVID-19 patients at KU Health System on Wednesday, down one from Tuesday. Five were in the intensive care unit, one less than Tuesday, and three were on ventilators, two less from Tuesday. The hospital peaked at 36 patients last week.

On Wednesday morning, Kansas had 29,717 cumulative positive COVID-19 cases, an increase of 841 since Monday, Dr. Norman said. The state had a cumulative 368 deaths, an increase of three since Monday.

Wyandotte County reported 4,673 cumulative positive COVID-19 cases at 1:15 p.m. Wednesday, an increase of 73 since Tuesday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 webpage. There were no new deaths; the cumulative total remained at 96.

Free testing offered

Free COVID-19 testing is planned from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, at the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, 16 S. Iowa St., Kansas City, Kansas.

Free testing also is offered from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, at the Vibrant Health Argentine location, 1428 S. 32nd St., Kansas City, Kansas.

The pop-up tests are offered through Swope and Vibrant Health and the Health Equity Task Force.

Free testing also is offered from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Unified Government Health Department parking lot at 6th and Ann, Kansas City, Kansas. For more information, call 311.

For more information on who may be tested and what to bring, visit https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.

The KU doctors’ news conference is online at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/901961476968352

The KDHE news conference is online at https://www.facebook.com/KDHEnews/videos/3181624445282231.

The Wyandotte County school start order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.


Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask order and is in Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan. For more information, residents may visit the UG COVID-19 website at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information or call 311 for more information.

The CDC’s COVID-19 web page is at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html.

19-year-old Turner resident leads by one vote over veteran lawmaker

Aaron Coleman (Photo from candidate)

Aaron Coleman, 19, a Demoratic candidate for state representative, 37th District, left Kansas City Monday night to go to Colorado Springs.

He was at dinner on Tuesday night when he started getting messages saying he had won the primary election over Democratic State Rep. Stan Frownfelter, 69, who has served in the Legislature since 2007. Frownfelter is the ranking minority member on the Commerce, Labor and Economic Development subcommittee.

Coleman, who ran for governor and Board of Public Utilities previously and is a precinct committeeman, said he didn’t believe it at first.

“I was expecting to lose by at least a couple of digits,” he said.

He said he doesn’t know how he won – “just hard work, I guess,” he said.

“I knocked probably about 1,000 doors in July,” Coleman said.

It was during the pandemic, and everyone was home, he added.

“I don’t think my opponent took me seriously,” he added. “I knocked on 70 percent of voters’ doors.”

He said he realizes that probably 50 ballots or so may still be out there that could come in, or not, to the Election Office by Friday. Anything postmarked by Tuesday may be counted if it arrives by Friday. It could require an automatic recount because it’s so close, he added.

Coleman said the election is a testament to the strength and power of the progressive movement.

He closely identifies with Sen. Bernie Sanders, and he said the biggest problem politics faces in both parties is money.

The difference between him and other Democrats, he said, is he has not taken $20,000 in donations from banks, telecom groups and other big donors.

“The biggest issue if we want to have a serious discussion in Kansas, is how to have representation by and for the people,” he said. “We need to ban lobbying.”

He said they need to get money out of politics.

Coleman said he supports each candidate receiving the same set amount of money and not having campaign donations, and he would support campaign reform laws.

“I believe if we have public funding of our elections, the people win each time,” Coleman said.

Rep. Frownfelter had about $19,575 on hand on July 24, with $34,354 available during the campaign reporting period, according to campaign finance reports. Coleman reported $1,939 on hand, having raised a total of $3,685, campaign finance reports stated.

Coleman said he was in favor of Medicaid expansion, but it does not go far enough. He supports universal health care, a single-payer system, sometimes called Medicaid for all.

To pay for the system, a tax on the very rich could generate enough for health care. Countries such as Switzerland, he noted, tax the rich to fund the health care system.

Coleman said Bernie Sanders was a great inspiration to him in campaigning for governor and state Senate.

“Regardless of if I win or lose, I’m just glad it even got this close,” Coleman said. “This shows the power and strength of the progressive movement, and that it works.”

Coleman currently is a dishwasher at a restaurant, and a college student at Johnson County Community College. He said he has hopes of graduating, going to the University of Kansas and entering the Air Force ROTC program, and getting his bachelor’s degree. Then he would join the Air Force for a six-year term.

He said if elected, he would like to serve two terms while in college, then go on to his career.

Coleman said he thinks the voters were saying they were sick and tired of the status quo.

“People are suffocating, dying, losing homes, jobs, lost health care, everything,” he said.

See comments from Rep. Frownfelter at https://wyandotteonline.com/election-night-totals-shocking-to-rep-frownfelter/.

New $350 million development announced for Kansas Speedway area in Wyandotte County

A new $350 million development bringing nearly 2,000 jobs was announced today for the Kansas Speedway area, at 118th and State Avenue in Wyandotte County.

Urban Outfitters, after evaluating markets across the central United States, selected Wyandotte County for the home for its new ecommerce direct fulfillment center, said Tim Cowden, president and CEO of the Kansas City Area Development Council. He made the announcement during a Zoom news conference on Wednesday afternoon.

Urban Outfitters has about 200 stores nationwide, Cowden said. The company, with headquarters in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, will use the new URBN distribution and fulfillment center as a logistics node for the general merchandise and consumer products Urban Outfitters company.

The new development will be an 880,000-square-foot multi-channel distribution center, according to the announcement. There will be 60,000 square feet of office space. Ground will be broken in the fall, and it may begin operating in early 2022.

Gov. Laura Kelly, Mayor David Alvey, NASCAR Vice President Lesa Kennedy, and several other officials participated in the Zoom announcement.

Gov. Kelly said this will be a “transformational project for the state.”

She said Urban Outfitters saw the value in a central location and strong infrastructure. They also found out more about what makes Kansas special – the people, she said. The Kansas work ethic is unmatched anywhere, the governor said.

Mayor Alvey said he was deeply impressed by the company’s vision.

“Urban is the kind of community business partner that we need to attract as we continue to grow our tax base, as we try to provide better and more services to all of our neighborhoods throughout Kansas City, Kansas, and Wyandotte County,” Mayor Alvey said.

Urban has committed to a long-term investment, Mayor Alvey said, and will strive to hire 35 percent of its workforce from Wyandotte County, he said. He also said the company is committed to using minority and women-owned businesses in the construction of the project, and will work with the Unified Government to provide transit services to employees. They also will provide child care solutions for employees, he said.

A workforce partnership with Kansas City Kansas Community College is planned.

Mayor Alvey said the company has committed to paying a wage of $18 an hour, which is a significant improvement on the median wage in Wyandotte County.

“We all know the very serious economic challenge that the COVID pandemic presents to all of us,” Mayor Alvey said. But they continue to see new development in Kansas City, Kansas, and the area.

He said they expect $270,000 in additional revenues for the city of Kansas City, Kansas, from this project, which is very significant for the community. Also, Bonner Springs school district would receive $200,000 to $220,000 a year, which is also significant, he said.

He thanked state officials, along with economic development officials, for their work on the project.

Incentives were not announced today, and they are currently working with the company on them, the mayor said in answer to a question at the news conference.

Lesa Kennedy, executive vice president of NASCAR, said they joined with Hillwood Development to find the best and highest uses for land. This property is “absolutely perfect” to do a deal with Urban, according to Kennedy.

Todd Platt, CEO of Hillwood Development of Ft. Worth, Texas, said Urban Outfitters is a strong retail company. He believes there will be a lot more investment in this community in the future. Ross Perot Jr. is chairman.

David Ziel, chief development officer at Urban Outfitters, said it will be a complex facility requiring a talented workforce to run it. He said they have been working on this project for 10 months.

“People first is the No. 1 driver of this decision,” Ziel said. “Kansas wins on the quality of the people.”