UG Commission unanimously approves emergency measures to deal with COVID-19

In a special meeting on March 19, the Unified Government Commission unanimously approved several emergency measures to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nine positive COVID-19 cases have been reported in Wyandotte County on March 19, according to health officials.

The mayor, UG administrator and Health Department staff made remarks at the meeting, while the UG Commissioners phoned in their comments and votes. The meeting was broadcast on UGTV, with a viewing area for the public in the City Hall lobby to accomplish social distancing.

The commission voted unanimously to extend the mayor’s emergency declaration to May 18.

The commission also unanimously approved an amendment that makes it a misdemeanor to violate, refuse or fail to comply with a written order of the health officer, Board of Health or director of health.

Those who violate the order could be fined a maximum of $500, according to UG officials.

The Sheriff’s Department or Police Department could make arrests, and violators could be prosecuted under the action, according to the UG’s chief attorney.

Also, the commission unanimously voted to authorize the county coroner or the UG administrator to appoint one or more deputy coroners if needed.

Then, meeting as the Wyandotte County Board of Health, the commissioners unanimously passed a resolution to ratify and support the emergency public health orders issued by Dr. Allen Greiner, chief medical officer, on March 16 and March 17. Those orders restricted gatherings to 10 or fewer, and also closed restaurants, bars, taverns, movie theaters and casinos, to try to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The establishments could continue providing takeout food.

Mayor David Alvey said the point of it all is to “flatten the curve,” to to avoid a spike that would overload the health care system.

“The recent decision by us and by Johnson County, Jackson County and Kansas City, Missouri, to close restaurants and bars is really an attempt to get out in front of it, because that’s what is happening elsewhere,” Mayor Alvey said.

Doug Bach, UG administrator, said he wanted to make sure the first-providers in the field are protected, also. They are working with Kansas and others to try to get supplies, he said.

This week, the UG began closing government offices. Effective Monday, they will effectively close operations to the public, including the motor vehicle area, and tags, where renewals will be available online, he said. The local district courts and municipal courts are suspended through late April, with district courts hearing emergency cases.

City Hall, the courthouse, Neighborhood Resource Center and annex operations will not be available for the public until further notice, he said.

There will be some public meetings where the doors will open about 15 minutes before the start of the meeting, he said, and they are working on other measures for public participation.

The public may walk into the police headquarters, South Patrol and Midtown Patrol to make reports, and they will be in glassed-in areas for security, he said.

Transit operations will continue through the metro area, coordinating with others in the Kansas City area, he said.

He said more information is on the UG’s website at Wycokck.org/COVID-19.

A collaborative group of leaders, health groups, hospitals, social service agencies, the three cities and others has been meeting to discuss the approach the UG should take to COVID-19, Mayor Alvey said.

He said they are beginning teleconference calls with the Kansas City, Kansas, Chamber of Commerce, Bonner Springs Chamber of Commerce, Wyandotte Economic Development and others.

They also will be conducting teleconference calls with local pastors on how to keep groups under 10.

Terrie Garrison, deputy director of the UG Health Department, gave an update on COVID-19 in Wyandotte County.

She said there were nine positive cases in the county as of March 19, and that the Health Department is investigating all of the contacts in the cases. They are determining if the persons need to self-quarantine or if there is a need for testing.

The Health Department is also setting up a process for testing, she said.

Those who have primary care doctors should call their doctor’s office first for information about whether they need to be tested, according to health officials.

A safety net provider, Southwest Boulevard Family Health Clinic, has set up drive-through safety net COVID-19 testing today for those patients who go to safety net clinics, according to Garrison.

The patients have to go through a safety net clinic and be assessed before they can drive-through for a test, she added.

Dr. Allen Greiner, the chief medical officer for Wyandotte County, said four COVID-19 drive-through tests were administered to the safety clinic today. Most of those tests will go to private labs, he added.

He said the Health Department is trying to work closely with the testing site to help with protocol and follow-up. They also will do contact investigation and tracing with the individuals who test positive.

“We’ve increased the size of our contact investigation activities,” Dr. Greiner said.

Volunteers with Heart to Heart International, who have done work with infectious diseases previously, are assisting, he said.

He added that Johnson County has decided not to do contact tracing because they have community spread, and have some positive cases where they cannot determine where the person contracted the disease.

He said he expected that Wyandotte County would continue to do its contact tracing work indefinitely.

Those who have contacts with positive COVID-19 cases are being asked to go into a 14-day quarantine, he said. Some of these cases will be “presumptive positive,” he added.

There has been a lack of testing previously, and having some community testing will help the Health Department, he believes. The community has a number of vulnerable people and health officials want to do everything to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Since there seems to be a lack of tests, local health officials will also rely on self-reporting.

Garrison said people may self-report their symptoms and severity to the Health Department, and health workers will get back with them, follow up and advise them. There will be a form available in the future on the UG’s COVID-19 website for self-reporting. Some of those who are self-reporting could be assumed to be presumptive positive.

Garrison said that would help them with “hot-spotting” different areas in the community to see where there might be pockets of infection.

Wyandotte Health Foundation is helping with funding sources for the safety nets, she said.

A former Health Department epidemiologist has come back to help with the effort, she added.

Challenges include making sure there are enough supplies for the Health Department and safety net providers, EMS workers and police officers, she said, and testing supplies.

Those who have a cough and fever should stay home unless they are going to their health care providers, she said. They should call first before they go. She also emphasized washing hands, keeping six feet away from others, cleaning surfaces and not shaking hands.

“It’s been amazing to watch the cooperation and teamwork that has transpired,” Commissioner Melissa Bynum said. “This community has shown us, once again, how resilient we are.”

To view the meeting, with more comments from the commissioners, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3bWe5oKFJU.

For more information, visit https://www.wycokck.org/COVID-19.