KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Three additional Kansas residents who recently tested positive for COVID-19 had interacted with a Johnson County resident who also had the virus, according to state officials.
Dr. Lee Norman, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, said during a Monday afternoon news conference that the first patient went to a social gathering when they were not feeling well.
"It is a reminder to all of us that we are giving these messages because they are critically important to incorporate into our daily lives," Norman said.
Norman also said between 80 to 90 staff and residents at a Kansas City, Kansas, nursing home — where one resident tested positive for COVID-19 after his death — have tested negative for the virus. He praised the staff at Life Care Center for their role in working to prevent the spread of the virus.
Kansas is now testing 150 to 200 samples per day at the KDHE lab, Norman said. Commercial labs, expected to come online soon, will help to ease the burden, he said.
"This isn't a theory; this is very real," Norman said, encouraging residents to continue taking preventive steps to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Gov. Laura Kelly said the state will follow the latest guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to limit gatherings to 50 people or less through mid-May.
She encouraged restaurants to offer curbside pickup and limit crowds inside when possible, though she noted many have already started doing that.
Kelly also said that when schools return after being closed this week, no more than 30 children will be allowed in a classroom at one time and social distancing will be implemented.
Those guidelines may be "revisited" in the near future as information continues to come in regarding the virus, Kelly said.