A nationwide lighting ceremony will honor COVID-19 victims at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19.
Gov. Laura Kelly has announced that Kansas will participate in this memorial to honor lives lost to COVID-19.
The Presidential Inauguration Committee is the host of the memorial, and cities and towns across America are invited to participate in the effort. In Washington, D.C., there will be lighting around the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to honor lives lost to COVID-19.
In Kansas, all the Statehouse interior lights will be turned on Tuesday afternoon to honor COVID-19 victims.
“The past 10 months have been filled with tragedy and loss for so many Kansans – and I offer my deepest sympathies to those who have lost friends, family members, or loved ones to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Gov. Laura Kelly said. “As we light the Kansas Statehouse, we will honor their memories and recommit ourselves to preventing further deaths by doing our part to slow the spread of the virus and ensure every Kansan is vaccinated.”
The widespread lighting event was initially planned by the Presidential Inaugural Committee for President-elect Joe Biden. Tuesday evening, the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool will be lit to memorialize American lives lost to COVID-19.
The Inaugural Committee invites states and communities across the nation to participate by lighting up buildings and ringing church bells at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday to participate in this national moment of unity and remembrance.
“I encourage all cities and counties in Kansas to join in and light up Courthouses, City Halls, or other buildings Tuesday evening,” Gov. Kelly said. “Let us all use this opportunity to unite as Kansans and as Americans and remember those we have lost.”
More than 3,800 COVID-19 vaccinations have been administered at the Unified Government Health Department’s facility at the former Kmart building at 78th and State Avenue.
The first to get the vaccines were health care workers, under the state’s guidelines.
The vaccination facility at 78th and State was toured on Jan. 14 by Gov. Laura Kelly, with other officials also present, including Mayor David Alvey, Administrator Doug Bach and Lindsay Douglas, deputy secretary with the Kansas Department of Transportation.
The site has the capacity to vaccinate 1,000 or more people a day, and with five days a week, 5,000 people a week or about 20,000 a month could get vaccinations at this facility, according to a spokesman.
“Wyandotte County has created one of the top vaccination centers in the region, serving as a model on how to provide residents with a safe, convenient, and accessible way to get vaccinated,” Mayor David Alvey said. “Meeting with Governor Kelly this week provided an opportunity for us to not only showcase the facility, but share with her that Wyandotte County is fully ready and capable of increasing our vaccinations as soon as more supplies are made available. We appreciate the governor’s support, continue working closely with state agencies and community partners, and will remain vigilant in efforts to protect our residents and population, especially with the vaccine now providing light at the end of the tunnel.”
Juliann Van Liew, director of the Unified Government Health Department, led the tour.
“We wanted the governor to see this facility and understand what patients experience when they come in to get their vaccination,” Van Liew said. “We have the potential to vaccinate many more residents and workers than we have been doing on a daily basis – our message to the governor is that we’re ready and able to vaccinate more people, and we are eager to get the vaccines we need to do that.”
The tour focused on explaining what patients experience at the facility when they come to get their COVID-19 vaccine, how much capacity the facility has and what preparations are being made to begin vaccinating more and more Wyandotte County residents as the county moves into phase 2 of the vaccination roll out.
The process will include:
• Patients enter the building, have their temperature scanned and go to the greeting and triage area to the right.
• At this location they receive a form to fill out, which provides the UGPHD with contact information needed to follow up with patients after their first vaccination, to provide them with reminders about when it’s time for their second shot.
• Patients line up and proceed to the vaccination area, where they turn in their form. They will receive a vaccine card showing which vaccine they received and the date and when their second dose is due. Patients are encouraged to keep this card and take a photo of it to keep on their phone in case it gets lost.
• Patients then step into an area screened for their privacy and receive their vaccine dose.
• Then patients go into the recovery area, where they will wait 15 to 30 minutes by registered nurses. This is done out of an abundance of caution in case anyone has an adverse reaction to the vaccine. There is a cone placed under chairs in this area indicating which patients need to wait for 15 minutes versus 30 minutes (orange for 15 minutes, yellow for 30 minutes).
• Once the waiting period is up, patients put the cone on the chair so facility staff know to sanitize it.
• On their way out, patients are invited to leave a comment on the Sentiments Wall, along with their signature.
In addition to the Kmart facility, the Unified Government is also working to open two additional mass vaccination facilities. One of these will be located in eastern Wyandotte County with the other one in western Wyandotte County.
Those who are interested in getting vaccinated and want to receive updates on when vaccines are available, may visit wycokck.org/COVID-19 and click on the “Vaccine Interest Form” button to fill out the Health Department’s survey. Anyone who needs assistance filling out the form may call 3-1-1 and a UG operator will assist them.
COVID-19 case numbers
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 25 COVID-19 cases on Monday, Jan. 18, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 16,162 cases. There was a cumulative total of 210 deaths.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 138,460 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Monday. There were 1,677 cumulative deaths, and 150 was the daily average of new hospitalizations.
The state of Kansas reported 259,822 COVID-19 cases statewide on Monday, an increase of 3,688 cases since Friday, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. There were an additional 23 deaths, with a cumulative total of 3,525.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Monday reported 24,074,200 total cumulative cases in the United States, with 398,980 total deaths nationwide.
Free COVID-19 testing available Tuesday
The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 19, at the former Kmart building, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The UG Health Department recently added flu testing to the COVID-19 test at the Kmart building. Only one swab is used for the two tests. The Health Department estimates a two- to three-day wait for COVID-19 results. For the flu, the department only contacts people if it is positive.
Tests from the Health Department 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 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 Tuesday, Jan. 19, 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. The site will be closed Jan. 20 and 21. For more information and to schedule a test, visit www.GoGetTested.com/Kansas.
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.
Wyandotte County reported an increase of 75 COVID-19 cases on Sunday, Jan. 17, according to the Unified Government’s COVID-19 webpage. There were a cumulative 16,137 cases. There was a cumulative total of 209 deaths.
The Mid-America Regional Council’s COVID-19 dashboard reported 138,272 cumulative COVID-19 cases on Sunday. There were 1,677 cumulative deaths, and 153 was the daily average of new hospitalizations.
The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard on Saturday reported 23,936,773 total cumulative cases in the United States, with 397,600 total deaths nationwide.
Free COVID-19 testing available Tuesday
The Unified Government Health Department’s COVID-19 test site at the former Kmart building at 78th and State will not be open Sunday and Monday. On Monday, offices will be closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Testing will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 19, at the former Kmart building, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The UG Health Department recently added flu testing to the COVID-19 test at the Kmart building. Only one swab is used for the two tests. The Health Department estimates a two to three day wait for COVID-19 results. For the flu, the department only contacts people if it is positive.
Tests from the Health Department 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 Tuesday, Jan. 19, 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. The site will be closed Jan. 20 and 21. For more information and to schedule a test, visit www.GoGetTested.com/Kansas.
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.
