Category: COVID-19

Local hospital full, doctor says

The University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kansas, is now full, and is turning down five or six transfer requests daily from other areas, according to Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer.

Dr. Stites made his remarks Wednesday morning at KU Health System. There was a total of 56 COVID-19 patients in the hospital Wednesday morning, including 31 active patients, he said. The hospital had a peak of 38 active COVID-19 patients a few days ago.

“We are back in trouble again,” Dr. Stites said. The third wave of the pandemic is here, and other hospitals in the Kansas City metropolitan area are experiencing similar situations approaching capacity, he said.

Much of Missouri and a lot of the Kansas City area now are considered high risk areas for COVID-19.

Dr. Stites said people should get vaccinated and follow the rules of infection prevention and control.

“Don’t wait for public health officials to tell you to mask when you’re indoors,” Dr. Stites said. Avoid gathering in large groups, he added.

“This has become a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” Dr. Stites said. Most of the COVID-19 patients in the hospital are not vaccinated.

Sixty percent of Missouri residents are unvaccinated as are 57 percent of Kansans.

Ninety percent of those hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated with the rest all having chronic serious medical conditions, according to Dr. Stites.

The hospital is full because it was experiencing a number of other regular procedures, and then has 56 COVID-19 patients in addition.

The panel of guests, who were infectious disease doctors, believe going back to mask mandates is inevitable because of the low vaccination rates and the rapid spread of the Delta variant. They agreed the only way to stop things from getting worse is a change in behavior, both in vaccination uptake and mask wearing.

The infectious disease doctors also discussed comparisons of the HIV-AIDS pandemic with the COVID-19 pandemic.To view their comments, visit https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/415961346331568.

Free vaccines available

Free COVID-19 vaccines will be available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday at the Kmart vaccination site, 7836 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. Vaccines are free for people ages 12 and older.

Central Middle School, 925 Ivandale, will be the site of free COVID-19 vaccines from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, July 24. Those 12 and older may be vaccinated, with ages 12 to 17 needing consent from their mother and father. The event is sponsored by El Centro with assistance from Heart to Heart International. Walk-ins are welcome, and appointments are accepted. The resource fair will include haircuts for kids, school supplies and information tables.

A community COVID vaccine event will take place from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday, July 27, at Harmon High School, 2400 Steele Road, Kansas City, Kansas. The vaccines are for those 12 and up. There also will be a backpack giveaway, free food boxes, mobile dental truck, meal tickets for newly vaccinated participants, free ice cream and music. There will be prizes for teens getting the vaccine. There will be an opportunity to enter a drawing for more prizes.

The Unified Government Health Department has announced there will be free COVID-19 vaccinations at a Sporting KC home match at 7:30 p.m. July 31. Vaccines will be available for ticketholders attending the games, who are 12 and older. People who get vaccinated will receive a free Sporting KC scarf.

For more information on the Unified Government Health Department’s vaccine schedule, see WycoVaccines.org.

Mobile vaccines can still be requested online at WycoVaccines.org or by calling 3-1-1 (913-573-5311).

Other sites available for vaccinations

Free vaccinations at KU Health System are open to the public. Current patients may use MyChart to make an appointment. Others may call 913-588-1227 or visit kansashealthsystem.com/vaccine to make an appointment to get vaccinated. KU Health System currently is vaccinating residents of Kansas and Missouri who are 12 or older, by appointment only. Those under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the appointment.

There are also pharmacies giving free COVID-19 vaccinations in Wyandotte County by appointment, when available. These include Price Chopper and Hen House pharmacies, which are now also accepting walk-in vaccinations or appointments, and are starting vaccinations for age 12 and up at those pharmacies that are giving Pfizer vaccine (see https://www.ballsfoodspharmacy.com/).

CVS has announced walk-in appointments for COVID-19 vaccine at some of its stores. Those interested in getting a vaccination at a CVS pharmacy are asked to visit a CVS website in order to make sure there is vaccine available. The website is at www.cvs.com/. Walgreens and Walmart also were listed on www.vaccines.gov as giving vaccinations.

Other pharmacies and sites giving vaccines are listed at www.vaccines.gov. The website also tells whether vaccines are in stock at the locations.

Case numbers reported

There were 31 active COVID-19 patients on Wednesday morning at the University of Kansas Health System, a decrease of two from Tuesday, according to Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer. Eleven patients were in the intensive care unit, an increase of two from Tuesday. Six were on ventilators, an increase of one from Tuesday. Another 25 patients were hospitalized because of COVID-19 but were out of the acute infection phase, an increase of three from Tuesday. There were 56 total COVID patients, an increase of one since Tuesday.

Wyandotte County reported a cumulative 19,582 cases on Wednesday, an increase of 26 since Tuesday, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There was a cumulative total of 301 deaths reported, an increase of one since Tuesday.

On Wednesday, July 21, the Unified Government Health Department reported that 38.1 percent of Wyandotte County residents had received at least one dose of vaccine. Those completing their vaccinations totaled about 33 percent.
The percentage of Wyandotte County residents who were age 12 and older who had received at least one dose was 46.9 percent.

The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 181,991 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Wednesday in the Kansas City region. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 92.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 325,728 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Kansas on Wednesday, July 21, an increase of 1,541 since Monday, July 19. There was a total of 5,218 cumulative deaths reported statewide, an increase of 20 since July 19.

The KDHE reported 61,655 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Johnson County on July 21, an increase of 350 since July 19. Leavenworth County had 7,618 cases, an increase of 52 since July 19. Sedgwick County (the Wichita area) reported 58,979 cases, an increase of 201 since July 19.

The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Wednesday night reported 34,226,806 COVID-19 cases in the United States, with 609,862 total deaths reported nationwide. There were 42,703 new cases nationwide.

Countries with new cases rising were United Kingdom, 46,688; U.S., 42,703; India, 42,015; Indonesia, 38,325; and Brazil, 26,403, according to Johns Hopkins information.

Vaccine doses reported administered in the United States Tuesday, 243,940. Forty-nine percent of the U.S. population was fully vaccinated.

Vaccines administered: Texas, 42,529; Michigan, 33,567; Florida, 33,241; New York, 24,418; and California, 18,743.

Global vaccination progress: Colombia, 214.8 million; China, 22.946 million; India, 3.626 million; France 2.421 million; and U.S., 243,900.
Free testing available

Free COVID-19 testing is available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, July 22, at the UG Health Department’s central location, the former Kmart, 7836 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. Free gift cards are available to those who get a test, while supplies last.

Free testing also is available from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, July 22, at the Vibrant Health Argentine location, 1428 S. 32nd St., Kansas City, Kansas.

Besides Health Department sites, free COVID-19 testing is available at several locations in Wyandotte County.

Visit gogettested.com/Kansas and https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19 for more sites.

Wyandotte County residents may contact the Health Department at wycohelp.org to sign up for a test to be delivered to their home.

For more details about free COVID-19 testing offered by the UG Health Department, visit https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19, https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept or call 3-1-1.

The Health Department’s general contact page is at https://www.wycokck.org/Health/Contact.aspx. The department’s Facebook page is at https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.

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. There are more test sites listed on this page.

The University of Kansas Health System’s update is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/971472483599576.

The University of Kansas Health System COVID-19 update page is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/330310795391910.

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.

The Johns Hopkins Data in Motion, a presentation on critical COVID-19 data in the past 24 hours, is at https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/covid-19-daily-video.

KCK school board votes to require masks in fall

The Kansas City, Kansas, Board of Education voted Tuesday night to approve masks for all students, staff, parents and visitors when school resumes in the fall.

The board voted unanimously to approve the recommendation, which was presented by Stephen Linkous, district chief of staff, and recommended by the superintendent.

According to Linkous, masks also will be required on school buses.

The new rules also call for students and others who have any symptoms to stay home, he said.

The district will try to have social distancing wherever possible, but they will not guarantee everyone is three to six feet apart, according to Linkous. Social distancing is no longer required by health guidelines, he said.

Daily continuous cleaning of the district’s buildings will be maintained, with disinfection at night, he said.

Linkous said the district has a re-entry team that meets monthly and can bring back any changes to the board for the policy in case COVID rates change.

This fall, teachers here will teach only in-person students, Linkous said.

Virtual learning will be offered to 50 elementary, 50 middle school and 200 high school students through Greenbush, a Kansas education service center based near Pittsburg, Kansas.

Dr. Anna Stubblefield, superintendent, said the numbers are the district’s guarantees for the number of students, but if there are more students than 50, they will work with them.

Students who participate in virtual learning would enroll through the district’s student services, Linkous said, but there would not be a district teacher checking in with them every day and making sure they are on task.

Also, he said teachers this year will not try to be teaching children in person at the same time as teaching students remotely on computers.

He said students would be expected to complete a semester before they have a chance to change the learning mode. They wanted students to stay on track, he said.

There is also a quarantine policy. If students are absent because of quarantine or a long-term illness, the students will be able to check with the district’s Canvas website to check for their assignments and other information.

This fall, campuses will be able to have outdoor activities and athletics, he said.

They would like smaller numbers at events such as open houses and back-to-school events, he said, to reduce the risk. For example, a school might hold an event for sophomores, another event for juniors.

The state athletic guidelines do not have requirements for masking outdoors, he said. Spectators would be permitted to attend athletic and school activities, he said. Spectators who are outdoors would not have to wear masks, but if they are indoors, masks would be required. Linkous said these are his recommendations, but board decisions.

Fine arts and physical education classes would have mitigations and adaptations in place according to local health department guidelines, he said.

Linkous said more information is expected to come out from the Kansas State High School Athletic Association next week on guidance for sports and activities.

Linkous said the district will be giving students an internet device to use for virtual learning, and there is a plan to provide internet service.

Wanda Brownlee Paige, board member, asked if there was a backup plan, and Linkous said if they were told to go back into remote learning, it might not be as bad this time because of the Canvas system the district is now using. It would be easier to keep track of student progress, he said.

After a question from Dr. Valdenia Winn, board member, Dr. Stubblefield said remote learning is not being considered at this time, as it isn’t allowed for any district in Kansas. The state allows virtual learning from Greeenbush. In the case the entire class has to quarantine, however, teachers would be prepared, Dr. Stubblefield said.

Linkous said the district plans for 100 percent in-person attendance, minus the students who choose to go virtually to Greenbush.

When asked about the district’s desk shields for students, Linkous said the district now is working on a plan, getting input from principals for district practices on how they are implemented.

Dr. Stacey Yeager, a board member, asked if there was a way to pool resources for the students at seven district schools who wear uniforms. She said she applauded the district for purchasing school supplies for every student and having them available in class from day one.

In other action, the school board reorganized on Tuesday, and Randy Lopez was re-elected board president.

Dr. Winn nominated the vice president, Paige, for re-election. Janey Humphries nominated Yolanda Clark for vice president. Another nomination was made for Maxine Drew for vice president.

The board voted three in favor of Paige, and four against, with those in favor including Lopez, Dr. Winn and Paige.

The board then voted 5-2 in favor of Clark as vice president, with Paige and Dr. Winn voting no.

Lopez thanked Paige for her service as vice president this past year, and said he learned a lot from her guiding and co-leading the board and district.

COVID-19 cases rising in Greater Kansas City area

As COVID-19 cases rise in the Greater Kansas City area and in the nation, medical professionals at the University of Kansas Health System briefly discussed what that means in terms of future restrictions.

Lance Williamson, infection prevention and control nurse supervisor at KU Health System, noted that Los Angeles became one of the first big cities over the weekend to reinstate mask mandates. He said if things become less safe, even for fully vaccinated people, that may happen here as well.

States and counties will have to take a hard look at their community numbers and make changes based on what might be needed, he said. They know that masking is an easy way to stop transmission of COVID-19, especially when they’re unsure of who is vaccinated and who is not in an area.

He also noted that it had been reported an alternate on the U.S. women’s gymnastics team had tested positive on the eve of the Olympic Games in Japan. It’s concerning, he said. They have taken a lot of precautions there, he added. There have been other COVID-19 cases reported at the Olympics, as well. Every time they see it, they think about it in their own communities and think about the risk changing here, too, he said.

Williamson said KU Health System has seen a steady increase of COVID-19 cases over the weekend, with 38 active cases hospitalized and a total of 54 COVID-19 patients. Thirteen were in the intensive care unit and five were on ventilators.

He said more information is needed to tell if COVID-19 will become a disease mostly of children in the future. On the question of schools and preventive measures, Williamson said there were some things schools could do to keep safe. In a large group of unvaccinated people, including children in school, Williamson was in favor of adults staying masked.

Dr. Paul Schroeppel, orthopedic surgeon, said the longer people continue to be unvaccinated, the longer they continue to have spikes and the longer it will be until they get back to normalcy. Everyone wants to get back to a normal life, he said.

He encouraged people to get vaccinated as soon as they become eligible.

It will be difficult as COVID-19 case numbers continue to go up to avoid masking at school, he said.

Williamson’s advice for the community was to be agile with numbers changing every day, don’t be afraid to put on a mask inside or outside, and get vaccinated as soon as possible.

Free vaccines available

The Unified Government Health Department has announced there will be free COVID-19 vaccinations at Sporting KC home matches at 7:30 p.m. July 21 and July 31. Vaccines will be available for ticketholders attending the games, who are 12 and older. People who get vaccinated will receive a free Sporting KC scarf.

Free COVID-19 vaccines will be available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday at the Kmart vaccination site, 7836 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. Vaccines are free for people ages 12 and older.

For more information on the Unified Government Health Department’s vaccine schedule, see WycoVaccines.org.


Mobile vaccines can still be requested online at WycoVaccines.org or by calling 3-1-1 (913-573-5311).

Other sites available for vaccinations

Free vaccinations at KU Health System are open to the public. Current patients may use MyChart to make an appointment. Others may call 913-588-1227 or visit kansashealthsystem.com/vaccine to make an appointment to get vaccinated. KU Health System currently is vaccinating residents of Kansas and Missouri who are 12 or older, by appointment only. Those under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian throughout the appointment.

There are also pharmacies giving free COVID-19 vaccinations in Wyandotte County by appointment, when available. These include Price Chopper and Hen House pharmacies, which are now also accepting walk-in vaccinations or appointments, and are starting vaccinations for age 12 and up at those pharmacies that are giving Pfizer vaccine (see https://www.ballsfoodspharmacy.com/).

CVS has announced walk-in appointments for COVID-19 vaccine at some of its stores. Those interested in getting a vaccination at a CVS pharmacy are asked to visit a CVS website in order to make sure there is vaccine available. The website is at www.cvs.com/. Walgreens and Walmart also were listed on www.vaccines.gov as giving vaccinations.

Other pharmacies and sites giving vaccines are listed at www.vaccines.gov. The website also tells whether vaccines are in stock at the locations.

Case numbers reported

A large rise in patient numbers was reported at KU Health System. There were 38 active COVID-19 patients on Monday morning at the University of Kansas Health System, an increase of six from Friday, according to Lance Williamson, infection prevention and control nurse supervisor at KU Health System. Thirteen patients were in the intensive care unit, an increase of one from Friday. Five were on ventilators, an increase of two from Friday. Another 16 patients were hospitalized because of COVID-19 but were out of the acute infection phase, an increase of six from Friday. There were 54 total COVID patients, an increase of 12 since Friday.

Wyandotte County reported a cumulative 19,509 cases on Monday, an increase of 73 since Friday, according to the Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 webpage. There was a cumulative total of 300 deaths reported, the same as Friday.
On Wednesday, July 14, the Unified Government Health Department reported that 37.42 percent of Wyandotte County residents had received at least one dose of vaccine. Those completing their vaccinations totaled 32.49 percent.
The percentage of Wyandotte County residents who were age 12 and older who had received at least one dose was 46 percent.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 181,823 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Monday in the Kansas City region. The daily average of new hospitalizations was 78.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported 324,187 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Kansas on Monday, July 19, an increase of 802 since Friday, July 16. There was a total of 5,198 cumulative deaths reported statewide, an increase of one since July 16.

The KDHE reported 61,305 cumulative COVID-19 cases in Johnson County on July 19, an increase of 167 since July 16. Leavenworth County had 7,566 cases, an increase of 28 since July 16. Sedgwick County (the Wichita area) reported 58,778 cases, an increase of 124 since July 16.

The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Monday night reported 34,129,941 COVID-19 cases in the United States, with 609,231 total deaths reported nationwide. There were 12,048 new cases nationwide.
Countries with new cases rising were United Kingdom, 47,848; Indonesia, 44,721; India, 38,164; Brazil, 34,126; and U.S., 12,048, according to Johns Hopkins information..
Vaccine doses reported administered in the United States Sunday, 500,910.
Vaccines administered: California, 88,920; North Carolina, 72,995; Texas, 47,327; Florida, 43,968; and New York, 33,139.
Global vaccination progress: China, 9.13 million; Japan, 3.337 million; India, 1.55 million; Brazil, 782,300; U.S., 500,900.

Free testing available

Free COVID-19 testing is available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, July 20, at the UG Health Department’s central location, the former Kmart, 7836 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. Free gift cards are available to those who get a test, while supplies last.

Besides Health Department sites, free COVID-19 testing is available at several locations in Wyandotte County.

Visit gogettested.com/Kansas and https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19 for more sites.

Wyandotte County residents may contact the Health Department at wycohelp.org to sign up for a test to be delivered to their home.

For more details about free COVID-19 testing offered by the UG Health Department, visit https://wyandotte-county-covid-19-hub-unifiedgov.hub.arcgis.com/pages/what-to-do-if-you-think-you-have-covid-19, https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept or call 3-1-1.

The Health Department’s general contact page is at https://www.wycokck.org/Health/Contact.aspx. The department’s Facebook page is at https://www.facebook.com/UGHealthDept.

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. There are more test sites listed on this page.

The University of Kansas Health System’s morning media update is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/1389448388104588.

The University of Kansas Health System COVID-19 update page is at https://www.facebook.com/kuhospital/videos/330310795391910.

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.

The Johns Hopkins Data in Motion, a presentation on critical COVID-19 data in the past 24 hours, is at https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/covid-19-daily-video.