Central Care Pharmacy opened recently inside the doctors’ building at Providence Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas. (Submitted photo)
Central Care Pharmacy opened recently inside the doctors’ building at Providence Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas.
An outpatient retail pharmacy, it is part of the Health Mart network of independent pharmacies and provides the public with a convenient and efficient way to pick up prescriptions, a spokesman stated.
The announcement of the opening was made by Central Care Cancer Center.
“Central Care Pharmacy is investing in its core team by giving patients superior, reliable care by consistent, well-trained specialists. Patients will know their pharmacist and technicians, which will inevitably, build trust. The trust that the patient will have with our service will make them more assured and comforted that their safety is of utmost priority. This certainly distinguishes Central Care Pharmacy from national chains,” Jackson Warner, Central Care Pharmacy director, said.
The pharmacy’s address is 8919 Parallel Parkway, Suite 250, inside the doctors’ building at Providence Medical Center.
For more information, visit https://cccancer.com/news/central-care-pharmacy-now-open-in-kansas-city-kansas/.
National Weather Service graphicNational Weather Service graphic
Mild weather continues today, on the first day of autumn.
Skies were still a bit hazy in Wyandotte County on Tuesday morning, with a temperature of 63 at 9 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.
The area will probably experience similar mild weather on Wednesday and Thursday, the weather service said. Smoke from western wildfires remained in the upper atmosphere here on Tuesday.
Rain is not in the Wyandotte County forecast, the weather service said, although storms are currently moving through southern Kansas and southern Missouri.
The next chance for rain in Wyandotte County is Saturday night, with 30 percent, according to the weather service.
Today, it will be partly sunny, with a high near 80 and a south southwest wind of 3 to 6 mph, the weather service said.
Tonight, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of 62 and a south wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening, according to the weather service.
Wednesday, it will be cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly sunny, with a high near 77, the weather service said. A calm wind will become south southwest around 6 mph in the morning.
Wednesday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 56 and a south wind of 3 to 5 mph, according to the weather service.
Thursday, it will be sunny, with a high near 81 and a south southwest wind of 3 to 8 mph, the weather service said.
Thursday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 60, according to the weather service.
Friday, it will be sunny, with a high near 84, the weather service said.
Friday night, it will be mostly clear, with a low of 62, according to the weather service.
Saturday, it will be sunny, with a high near 84, the weather service said.
Saturday night, there is a 30 percent chance of showers before 1 a.m., with a low of 56, according to the weather service.
Sunday, it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 77, the weather service said.
Sunday night, it will be partly cloudy, with a low of 57, according to the weather service.
Monday, it will be sunny, with a high near 78, the weather service said.
Wyandotte County reported 6,589 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Monday afternoon, an increase of nine cases since Sunday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 webpage. There were no additional deaths reported; the cumulative total is 133. (From UG COVID-19 webpage)The seven-day rolling average of positive COVID-19 cases in Wyandotte County has been trending down, according to a graph on the UG COVID-19 webpage. (From UG COVID-19 webpage)
Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday afternoon said that COVID-19 is currently spreading an an “alarming” rate in Kansas.
The state reported 1,674 more COVID-19 cases since Friday, she said, with four additional deaths. In one week, the state added 4,060 cases, according to Kansas Department of Health and Environment statistics.
Kansas had a cumulative total of 600 deaths and 53,959 cases on Monday, KDHE reported.
“Weeks ago, I stood here at my regular weekly briefing and said that Kansas was at a ‘make it or break it’ moment,” Gov. Kelly said at a news conference Monday. “Looking at the case numbers from last week, it does not seem that we made it.”
Gov. Kelly laid the responsibility for the rising case numbers at the feet of those leaders who did not want a statewide policy.
“I’m concerned that because of certain legislative leaders, Kansas has been left with a patchwork of local mask mandates, instead of a statewide policy like 34 other states,” Gov. Kelly said.
“And I’m concerned that the Supreme Court will be hearing another case to repeal the Affordable Care Act on Nov. 10,” she said.
If the Supreme Court strikes down the Affordable Care Act, three things will happen during the worst public health crisis they have seen in a century, she said.
“More than 1 million Kansans with pre-existing conditions would be in danger of being kicked off their health insurance plans, including the over 53,000 Kansans who’ve contracted COVID-19,” Gov Kelly said.
Also more than 85,000 Kansans enrolled in the Kansas exchange would lose their health insurance, and 11 million Americans across the country would also lose coverage, she said.
“We would not be able to get 150,000 Kansans covered by Medicaid expansion, because the states would have to absorb the total cost of Medicaid expansion,” Gov. Kelly said.
The governor said contributing factors to the rise in case numbers were schools and businesses opening, sports resuming, flu season, and symptoms were made more severe by pre-existing health conditions.
“We knew this was coming, we knew we could prepare for it, but because we failed to implement a coherent, coordinated mask policy, because we have taken an ineffective patchwork approach to our COVID-19 response, cases and deaths continue to rise,” Gov. Kelly said.
She said her administration has prioritized keeping Kansans healthy while keeping the economy open for business and schools open for learning.
She said they have continued to rebuild Kansas’ foundation from “the devastation done during the last administration.” Her administration has protected school funding, continued to announce new road projects and broadband expansions will soon follow, she said.
The state has announced several significant economic development projects in the past few months, including the Urban Outfitters distribution center in Wyandotte County, which will create up to 2,000 new good-paying jobs, the expanded Schwan’s facility in Salina with another 225 new jobs, and the opening of a modern manufacturing facility in Eudora with 78 jobs, she said.
“I fear if we cannot get a handle on the spread of the virus, we will not maintain our successes,” Gov. Kelly said.
HB 2016, the bill that granted emergency authority to the state finance council, does not contain a comprehensive state strategy for testing for COVID-19 or for providing a vaccine, let alone a mask mandate, she said.
“We have become an island in the Midwest, the only state in the region to not have expanded Medicaid,” she said.
Prospective CEOs always want to know if Kansas can provide them with a healthy workforce, she said, and an infrastructure to keep their employees and families safe.
“Our state’s path and economic growth is dependent upon healthy Kansans. We must develop coherent, coordinated mitigation strategies to get control of the virus in our state. In the meantime I urge Kansans whether they’re mandated or not to continue whether mandated or not, to wear masks, maintain social distance and avoid large crowds,” Gov. Kelly said.
She added that any of the state’s essential workers who have contracted COVID-19 have financial assistance available to cover health care expenses for early childhood workers and other essential workers who have become ill. More information is at https://ksherorelief.com/.
Doctors say COVID-19 numbers are growing in smaller communities
At a news conference at the University of Kansas Health System, doctors on Monday said that smaller communities now have more COVID-19 patients.
The doctors heard reports from other Kansas City area hospitals, where the numbers have stabilized and are not high currently. They also heard numbers from a hospital in Hays, Kansas, where there were 14 COVID-19 inpatients, higher than they usually have.
Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at KU Health System, said there is a risk of overwhelming the hospitals in rural communities if people there don’t adhere to wearing a mask and social distancing.
Wearing a mask becomes easy after a few weeks, according to Dr. Hawkinson, and he asked leaders in the communities and schools to set an example, wearing masks and practicing social distancing.
Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at KU Health System, said distancing and wearing a mask have helped, but if people don’t continue it, schools will have to return to remote learning. It’s too early to tell how schools are coping with COVID-19, according to Dr. Stites, and they will know more in October and November.
Dr. Stites said mask-wearing, social distancing and avoiding large gatherings will work to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
KU Health System reported 15 acute COVID-19 patients on Monday morning, a drop from 21 Friday, according to Dr. Hawkinson. There were four acute COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit, a decrease from six on Friday, and three on ventilators, an increase from two on Friday. There also were 28 other patients who are not in the acute COVID-19 phase now, down from 32 on Friday.
At the KU doctors’ news conference on Monday, Advent Health reported 13 COVID-19 patients; Truman Medical Center, 22 COVID-19 patients; Liberty Hospital, 8 COVID-19 patients; and Children’s Mercy Hospital, no COVID-19 patients.
Wyandotte County reported 6,589 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Monday afternoon, an increase of nine cases since Sunday, according to the Unified Government COVID-19 webpage. There were no additional deaths reported; the cumulative total is 133.
The KDHE reported that Wyandotte County cases increased by 83 from Friday morning to Monday morning.
According to the KDHE report, Johnson County had 10,462 cumulative cases on Monday morning, an increase of 284 cases since Friday morning.
Sedgwick County, the Wichita area, reported 8,465 cases on Monday morning, an increase of 195 cases since Friday morning.
Some of the other county totals included Ford County, 2,691 cases; Shawnee County, 2,602; Douglas County, 1,983 cases; Leavenworth County, 1,979 cases; Finney County, 1,935 cases; Seward County, 1,456 cases; Riley County, 1,310 cases; and Reno County, 1,024 cases.
Testing continues Tuesday
Free pop-up COVID-19 testing continues from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, at All Saints parish, 811 Vermont Ave., Kansas City, Kansas.
The free pop-up testing is through the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force and Vibrant Health.
Free testing also will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Health Department parking lot, 619 Ann Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. People should bring an item such as a piece of mail or a work badge to show they live or work in Wyandotte County.
The pop-up tests and the Health Department tests now are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to a COVID-19 patient.
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-Informationor call 311 for more information.
