More detailed information about the new school COVID-19 rules was presented at the Friday afternoon Kansas City, Kansas Board of Education meeting.
The school board asked questions and took no actions Friday. The board may make decisions later on if and how the district implements any of the new, relaxed school health orders. School has been remote for the past several months; the district has a reopening plan.
School board members were concerned about the county’s high positivity rate, and about supplying masks to 22,000 children, among other issues.
Dr. Erin Corriveau, deputy medical officer for Wyandotte County, told the board that they may be wondering why they are relaxing the rules, especially as she had presented information that the spread of the coronavirus seems to be worse currently, cases were up, hospitalizations increased in December and the death rate here was higher than surrounding counties.
She said the Unified Government Health Department wants to prioritize students and teachers.
“We’re becoming very worried about them,” she said. The Health Department has talked with superintendents and knows there are worries about student achievement, she said.
Dr. Alicia Miguel, interim superintendent, said the superintendents meet every week and have regular updates from the Health Department.
Knowing the numbers of COVID-19 cases are pretty low in school-age children, the Health Department wants to prioritize education and keep the rest of the community rules pretty stringent, Dr. Corriveau said.
Wyandotte County currently has mask rules and gathering rules that limit bars and restaurants to 50 percent capacity. But they are planning to open schools a little and make some changes so children can get back to a semblance of normal, according to Dr. Corriveau.
Quarantine rules have been relaxed for schools in Wyandotte County, she said. Instead of quarantining everyone in the classroom for two weeks if there is a positive COVID-19 case, now the rule will be that those sitting directly right and left, forward and back of the positive case will have to quarantine, she said. The quarantine period is 14 days in Wyandotte County for those who have been exposed to a positive COVID-19 case.
Dr. Corriveau said under the new school order, teachers should wear KN95 masks and students will be required to wear 2-ply or 3-ply cloth masks or paper surgical masks.
They will continue to require spacing of 6 feet apart, she said. Four to six children will be allowed to sit together at the same table to learn, with the tables spaced at least 6 feet apart.
Middle school and high school students have been required to stay in the same classroom previously. Now they are allow these students to change classrooms four times a day.
Elizabeth Groenweghe, Health Department epidemiologist, said most children who acquired COVID-19 got it outside the school, at a family or friends’ function.
In Wyandotte County, Turner reported 126 student cases and 127 staff cases; Piper, 58 student cases and 9 staff cases; and Bonner Springs, 54 student cases and 11 staff cases, she said.
The KCK schools were not included since students were in remote classes.
“Initially it might seem like high numbers,” she said about the totals. “In reality, we saw very little transmission within the school district.”
While there were not a lot of outbreaks at schools, the Health Department tracked three through the semester, she said. Two were related to soccer teams and one was related to a softball team.
“We still feel close contact sports do pose a higher risk of transmission versus students sitting independently and quietly at their desks,” she said.
Dr. Corriveau said teachers will fall into Phase 2 for COVID-19 vaccines, under “high-contact critical workers.” Currently they are in Phase 1 involving health care worker vaccinations.
She said they expect to get to Phase 2 vaccines by the end of the month or by February.
She said Wyandotte County residents and workers may fill out a survey on the Health Department website to sign up for the vaccine. They have asked superintendents for the number of teachers and staff who would like to receive the vaccine, she added.
The website button will lead to a survey that anyone in the county can fill out, she added. People will be contacted when it is their time to get the vaccine, she added.
The Health Department will accept the number submitted by the school district for vaccines, and district employees do not have to turn in separate individual surveys if their district turns in a total number, Dr. Corriveau said.
She added she would like the spouses and families of school district employees who live or work in Wyandotte County to know about filling out the survey online at https://us.openforms.com/Form/2f2bcc68-3b6a-450b-9007-d39819db6572.
Paige asked if it bothered them that Wyandotte County had a rolling average positivity rate of 38.6 percent, only 11.4 percent away from 50 percent.
Groenweghe said it is concerning. She also said that testing here is not high enough right now, and that if they’re only testing people with symptoms, then the positivity rate would be high.
“We are not testing enough people in Wyandotte County right now,” she said. They have the capacity to test a lot more, she added. Anyone, symptoms or not, may be tested, but currently it’s mostly ones who feel sick who are being tested.
Paige asked about on-the-spot testing at schools.
Groenweghe said they have used that in other districts, partnered with a lab in Lenexa to offer saliva tests. Turner and Bonner did randomized testing, she said.
The Kansas City, Kansas, school district offered tests for staff as well, and plan to offer that again, she said.
Groenweghe said the school nurses in the school district who wanted the COVID-19 vaccine have already received it. Also, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists and psychologists have been called to receive their vaccines, and they will move on to social workers later.
Board President Randy Lopez asked if the Health Department believes it is more safe now, as they know a little more about the coronavirus, to send students back to school.
Dr. Corriveau thought it was true that they know more about keeping safe.
Fewer kids are positive than they thought there would be, she said. The virus is not spreading the way they thought it would in school. Some people think young children have some immunity to COVID-19 because they have gotten other coronaviruses, she said.
“We do worry about the teachers and parents somewhat,” she said. It is not OK to go without masks and have classes as usual, she added.
In answer to a question from Dr. Valdenia Winn, Groenweghe said Turner had to close some schools for a quarantine this past semester. They switched classes to remote learning to give time for people to quarantine before coming back.
Dr. Winn asked about taking children’s temperatures as they come into school.
Dr. Corriveau said they are seeing a lot of COVID-19 cases where people do not have fevers. She recommended that children’s temperatures be taken at home before school if possible, or not go to school if they have a fever. She said a lot of students can be too close together waiting for their temperature to be taken as they come into school.
There is also a list of symptoms they’re recommending families to consider, and not send their children to school if they have those symptoms, she added.
Dr. Winn said with 22,000 students, there are going to be a lot who do not take any temperature screening or other screening at home.
Dr. Corriveau said schools and nurses are working together to identify those kids, and as they identify them, they will test them on the spot, call the parents and get them home if they are sick.
“How do you keep the virus from breaking out once we resume in-person classes?” Dr. Winn asked.
Groenweghe said mitigation strategies work well to prevent spread, including wearing a mask, washing hands, staying home when sick and socially distancing.
Dr. Winn said they would take it back to the school board later to discuss it. She added that everyone who enters the Statehouse must have a mask and must have temperatures taken, the same is true at KU hospital.
“All I’m asking for is some kind of statement to say those were protocols many doctors recommend,” she said.
Discussing more about the high positivity rate and gating criteria, Dr. Corriveau said if everyone in the county was tested, the numbers would probably go down. Ill persons coming in to get tests are just a small percentage of the population.
Paige said a lot of teachers are worried. Some of them are older and they want to make sure everyone is safe, she said. Going almost anywhere, people are required to have their temperatures taken, she said. The Health Department is saying parents should check temperatures. However, there are questions that parents will do that.
“We’re in a Catch-22 and trying to figure it out,” Paige said.
Board member Janey Humphries wanted more information about larger school districts and how they compare to the KCK district. She said other districts in Wyandotte County are much smaller and very different.
Humphries said being in school one week and remote another week will be harder for some of their parents than staying remote.
Dr. Corriveau said when school districts resume school in person, they will first bring their plan to the Health Department for approval. It can be a brief plan, outlining how to follow mitigation strategies. The plans will show how kids and teachers move through the day, she said.
Asked about sports, Dr. Corriveau said the Health Department is still recommending that contact sports not be played. Some districts have not taken the recommendation, but the doctors still think it is not wise to play contact sports, she said. Sports such as track and field and tennis are OK, but wrestling does not seem like a wise idea, she said, as there is too much contact for too long of a time.
The Jan. 8 school board meeting will be available for viewing later on YouTube.
COVID-19 case numbers
Groenweghe on Friday said Wyandotte County has been averaging 91 new cases a day, in the seven-day rolling average.
On average, there has been less than one death per day, she said, with the rate at .14. The county has had more than 200 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.
The 38.6 percent positivity rate tells them how prevalent COVID-19 is in Wyandotte County. It also tells them if they are testing enough, she said. Last month, they saw the number of tests here decrease, and may not be testing enough, she said.
When case rates per 100,000 are used, Wyandotte County has the highest case rate and highest death rate than surrounding communities, she said.
She said they are seeing adults ages 20 through 40 driving transmission and the spread of the virus in the community currently. That is why some of the actions are targeting these age groups, she said.
School age group numbers are half or less than the 20 to 29 age group, she said.
Dr. Corriveau said unfortunately they were still seeing an increase in deaths among hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
Hospital cases currently are up overall in Kansas, and throughout the metropolitan area, she said.
The mortality rate at the University of Kansas Health System is 9.6 percent, which means of those who enter the hospital with COVID-19, almost 10 percent are dying. The average age of COVID-19 patients is 57 and the average age of death is 56, she said.
The young and middle-aged people are probably spreading the virus more, while those a little older are dying.
KU Health System was hit really hard in November and December with COVID-19 patients, she said.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 43 COVID-19 cases on Sunday, Jan. 10, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 15,566 cases. There were no additional deaths reported Sunday, for a cumulative total of 204.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 132,104 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Saturday. There were 1,599 deaths, and 172 was the daily average of new hospitalizations.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Sunday reported 22,406,816 total cumulative cases in the United States, with 374,322 total deaths nationwide.
Free COVID-19 testing available Monday
Free COVID-19 testing will be available from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 11, at the Oak Ridge Baptist Church, 9301 Parallel Parkway, Kansas City, Kansas.
No appointment is needed. Masks and social distancing are required. The test is available through Vibrant Health and the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force.
The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will be open on Monday, Jan. 11, with testing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tests are free for those who live or work in Wyandotte County. The tests are nasopharyngeal swab tests. The Health Department no longer uses saliva tests.
The tests now 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.
COVID-19 tests will be available from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday 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. For more information and to schedule a test, visit www.GoGetTested.com/Kansas.
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.
For more information about the testing site at the former Kmart location, visit https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/10092020_newtestingsitewyco.pdf.
The new school health order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/localhealthofficerschoolorder01042021.pdf.
A letter explaining the new school health order is online at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/schoolletter_01052021_english.pdf
To see information about the UG giving vaccines to health care workers, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/ug-to-start-giving-covid-19-vaccines-to-health-department-and-ems-personnel-next-week/.
The KDHE vaccine report is at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1708/COVID-19-Vaccine-Updates–123020-FINAL-PDF?bidId=.
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. Also, the Wyandotte County health order with a limit of 10 persons to a gathering, and a closing time of 10 p.m. for restaurants and bars, with other new restrictions, is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/files/assets/public/health/documents/covid/11162020localhealthorderexecuted.pdf.
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.