It was the routine testing of an athlete that discovered the United Kingdom variant of COVID-19 in Ellis County, Kansas, last week, according to the Kansas secretary of health.
Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas health secretary, said they isolated the B117 variant in an Ellis County case last week. The variant is generally thought to cause more severe illness. Dr. Norman discussed the case at a news conference Tuesday morning at the University of Kansas Health System.
“We’ve talked a lot about how to keep schools going, how to keep colleges and universities safe,” Dr. Norman said. “We’ve been addressing this for months now.”
About a week ago, on Feb. 3, the first case of the UK variant was identified in a student-athlete at Fort Hays State University. A weekly testing of student-athletes, coaches and support staff identified the COVID-19 case on Jan. 27, then genomic sequencing was done on a sample provided by the university to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
The KDHE went into action, sending a strike team to Fort Hays State University on Feb. 5 to test about 200 individuals who might have had contact with the student-athlete, he said.
They found only one positive case out of the 200, he said. As of Tuesday morning, they were waiting to hear if the sample was the B117 variant, he said.
Testing of athletes is helping to identify cases, leading to isolating positive cases and stopping the spread of COVID-19. Testing of the public is free and available, but overall numbers of people being tested has declined recently in this community and also in other areas in the state.
Another method being used in Kansas to track the virus is the analysis of wastewater samples, Dr. Norman said.
“In Ellis County, the week prior to the isolation of this particular variant, we found an uptick in the number of genomic fragments in the wastewater,” Dr. Norman said. “It’s an early indicator, when the wastewater starts upticking in terms of the amount of viral particles, then we can look in a more detailed manner in that community.”
They’re doing more testing in the state lab, doubling its capacity to 350 samples a week, he said. They’re keeping an eye not just on B117 variant but on anything that might come up with the virus, he said.
Around the state, not just at the KU Health System, but at other hospitals large and small, the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations, new cases and deaths are coming down, Dr. Norman said.
On Monday, there were 1,398 new cases reported statewide, averaging 450 a day, he said, compared to the former rate of about 2,000 a day, he said.
“We still have our hands full, but the vaccine is rolling out in a very good way,” he said.
More than 317,000 administered COVID-19 vaccines have been recorded in Kansas, but Dr. Norman said he believes this figure is low. With hundreds of vaccinating sites, getting the data in has been difficult, and some of the technology also has been difficult to use, according to Dr. Norman. Six counties account for about 100,000 of the doses that have been given but have not been recorded in the system yet, Dr. Norman said.
About 82 percent of the residents of skilled nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Kansas have been vaccinated with one dose, he said. The program will continue into March, he added, with the second dose.
Retail pharmacies will begin giving the COVID-19 vaccine, he said. Some will be larger pharmacies, such as Walmart, he said, while some smaller pharmacies also will be participating.
He said more vaccine information in Kansas is found under the tab, “Find My Vaccine” on the Kansas vaccine website at Kansasvaccine.gov. A map will show where vaccination sites are. Community pharmacies will receive allocations directly from the federal government, he said.
So far there are many more sites than there is vaccine, but he is optimistic that there will be an uptick in vaccines that Kansas receives.
On Tuesday, the Find My Vaccine map showed only two vaccination sites currently operating in Wyandotte County, both from the Unified Government Health Department. One was at the former Kmart store at 78th and State and the other was at the former Best Buy store at 105th and Parallel Parkway. Appointments are required to get a COVID-19 vaccine at both places, and those who are 85 and older, or high-contact critical workers, are currently prioritized.
A Walmart news release discussed locations of its pharmacies that would offer vaccinations, but there were no Wyandotte County locations on Walmart’s list on Tuesday. The pharmacy program was aimed more at getting vaccines to rural areas that are underserved. Another possible vaccination clinic was at the Hen House at 82nd and Parallel Parkway; however, its website said vaccine supply was not available yet, and the Kansasvaccine.gov site was not showing it as active yet on Tuesday. Some Price Chopper stores in the metro are also were planning to offer the COVID-19 vaccine.
The 8,700 vaccine doses that are going to 82 pharmacies in 36 counties is just really like a drop in the bucket compared to what they need, Dr. Norman said. He views this initial pharmacy rollout as similar to a beta test. There is a lot of optimism about the program, he said, because a lot of pharmacies are in communities that are hard to reach. The CDC is working directly with retail pharmacies, Dr. Norman said, adding that he had a great deal of respect for the people who are in charge.
With all the talk about pharmacies providing vaccines, Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer of KU Health System, asked Dr. Norman if there was a role for health systems throughout the state as vaccine production ramps up.
Dr. Norman said there definitely was a role for health systems, hospitals, clinics and local medical providers, as well as health departments, which are leading the effort in many communities.
“I think there’s going to be a gradual uptick in the existing vaccines we now have but the larger incremental jump will occur when we have more vaccines,” Dr. Norman said.
The Johnson and Johnson vaccine, with one shot only, will be very good for mobile populations, such as homeless people, he added.
It will be a long time, at least a few weeks, before they see a dramatic increase, Dr. Norman said.
COVID-19 case numbers reported
The total number of COVID-19 active and recovering COVID-19 patients at the University of Kansas Health System was 78 on Tuesday, a decrease of one since Monday, according to Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control. There were 29 active COVID-19 patients in the hospital, an increase of two from Monday. Eleven of those patients were in the intensive care unit, an increase of one since Monday, with five on ventilators, the same number as Monday. There were another 49 patients hospitalized because of COVID-19 who were out of the acute phase, a decrease of three since Monday.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 22 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, Feb. 9, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 17,231 cases. There was a cumulative total of 242 deaths, an increase of five since Monday.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 151,078 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Tuesday. There were 1,940 cumulative deaths, and 99 was the daily average of new hospitalizations.
The state of Kansas reported 282,960 COVID-19 cases statewide on Monday, an increase of 1,398 cases since Friday, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. The increase in cases from Friday to Monday was about half of the increase from Wednesday to Friday. There were an additional 96 deaths reported, with a cumulative total of 4,197.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Tuesday night reported 27,189,761 cases in the United States, with 468,103 total deaths nationwide.
Free COVID-19 tests Wednesday
COVID-19 tests also be available Wednesday, Feb. 10, at the Pierson Community Center parking lot, 1800 S. 55th St., Kansas City, Kansas. Hours are subject to change depending on the weather and other factors. These tests are through WellHealth Management. Appointments are required at the Pierson Community Center. For more information and to schedule a test, visit www.GoGetTested.com/Kansas.
The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 10. Appointments are not needed for COVID-19 tests. To see if there is any change to the schedule, visit https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.
The Health Department is now offering saliva COVID-19 tests to the public.
Tests from the Health Department are free for those who live or work in Wyandotte County.
The tests are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19. Check with the UG Health Department’s Facebook page to see if there have been any changes in the schedule. Bring something that shows that you live or work in Wyandotte County, such as a utility bill.
Wyandotte County residents who are interested in getting a COVID-19 vaccine may fill out a survey form at the UG Health Department at https://us.openforms.com/Form/2f2bcc68-3b6a-450b-9007-d39819db6572. Residents will be contacted to make an appointment when vaccine becomes available. The Health Department currently is vaccinating high-contact critical workers, as well as residents over 85.
Testing sites are at https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19.
Saliva testing is now offered at the UG Health Department. For more information, visit https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/02042021-ugphd-saliva-testing-available.pdf.
The KU doctors’ news conference is online at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/1114871398934440.
For more information about how Wyandotte County residents over 85 can get a vaccine at the Health Department site, visit https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/02032021_wycovaccinationsage85.pdf.
Vaccine data for the state of Kansas is at https://www.kansasvaccine.gov/158/Data.
Cards and letters of encouragement for caregivers at KU Health System may be sent to Share Joy, care of Patient Relations, 4000 Cambridge St., Mailstop 1021, Kansas City, Kansas, 66160. Emails can be sent to [email protected].
Wyandotte County is under a mandatory mask and social distancing order.
The UG COVID-19 webpage is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.
The KDHE’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/.
The KC Region COVID-19 Hub dashboard is at https://marc2.org/covidhub/.
The Wyandotte County page on the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 website is at https://bao.arcgis.com/covid-19/jhu/county/20209.html.