KANSAS CITY, Mo. — 41 Action News is offering a daily recap of COVID-19 related stories from across Kansas City and the country. Check back every morning for the latest developments.
LATEST: COVID-19 case tracker for Missouri, Kansas and Kansas City
University of Kansas Health System daily COVID-19 update
Doctors with the University of Kansas Health System said they had a slight decrease in COVID-19 patients between Wednesday and Thursday. There are currently 89 patients with active COVID-19 infections in the hospital, down from a little over 100. Of those 89 patients, 46 are in the ICU and 28 are on ventilators. Another 68 patients are in the recovery phase.
Officials answered questions from the public and discussed their experience administering Bamlanivimab so far, which is a new monoclonal antibody treatment given through an IV.
Chiropractors seeing effects of stress, work from home setups
Kansas City-area chiropractors are seeing an increase in patients who have tension and need realignment because of stress related to the pandemic or from their work-from-home setup.
National partnership will bring up to 760 health care workers to Missouri
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced Wednesday that thanks to a partnership with a national health care company, Vizient, more than 700 industry workers will be headed to Missouri to help with staffing shortages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kansas to receive, distribute 150,000 vaccine doses by month's end, governor says
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly on Wednesday said the state will receive 150,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses by the end of December. The doses will come from the Pfizer and Monderna vaccines.
KC metro leaders prepare for 1st wave of COVID-19 vaccines
Kansas City leaders are preparing for the distribution of the first wave of COVID-19 vaccines in the state. The first round will go to health care workers and high-risk populations. A second wave would focus on minority communities. Missouri will receive 2% of the nation's first round of vaccines as the state makes up 2% of the U.S. population.
KC Moderna COVID-19 vaccine trial participants encourage vaccination
A Kansas City woman participating in the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine trial shared her experience with the two rounds of injections and is encouraging everyone else to receive the medication when it is available.
Johnson County updates quarantine protocols
The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment has updated its protocols for COVID-19 related quarantines. The protocols now match current recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Now, any close contact who gets a PCR COVID-19 test on day five or later after being exposed and is negative with no symptoms can return to activities on their eighth day of quarantine.
Without a test, close contacts must quarantine for 10 full days if they don't show symptoms.
KCMO Health Department braces for busy December of testing, tracing
The Kansas City, Missouri, Health Department is bracing for December as CARES Act funding for COVID-19 testing and tracing begins to dry up and as people increasingly gather together for the holidays, increasing exposure opportunities.
Closed schools impact test scores for students, study finds
A new study shows test scores - particularly in math - fell for students in third through eighth grade who were learning remotely this fall. It also shows that minority students, especially in high-poverty areas, are more negatively affected by the lack of in-person learning.
KCMO Municipal Court moves to virtual hearings after positive tests
The Kansas City, Missouri, Municipal Court is moving all trials to virtual after two positive COVID-19 tests were reported. All in-person trials are being postponed and public access to the building is closed.
US sets daily record for coronavirus deaths, hospitalizations top 100K
The U.S. once again broke a gruesome COVID-19 record on Wednesday. Johns Hopkins reported 3,157 COVID-19 deaths, breaking the previous record of 2,607 that was set in April. The country has also topped the surge of virus-related hospitalizations seen in the spring and summer.
712,000 Americans sought unemployment benefits last week as COVID-19 continues to spread
Another 712,000 Americans filed for unemployment last week, a slight decrease from the week before but a sign the economy is still struggling.
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