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 update
Doctors with the University of Kansas Health System said Tuesday they see reason for optimism, with new COVID-19 case numbers declining in the Kansas City region.
On Tuesday, the University of Kansas Health System reported 63 active COVID-19 patients in the hospital, including 16 in the ICU and 11 on ventilators. In addition, the hospital has 57 patients in recovery stages.
“I think we have — we have seen this the last couple of weeks — really reached that plateau, which we can handle as far as capacity and critical and vital drugs and staffing,” said Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention. “But certainly as we continue to see that seven-day rolling average of cases in the metro area go down, hopefully our active cases in the hospital will go down.”
Dr. Lee Norman, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, joined doctors on the call and said numbers statewide also are improving “rather dramatically.”
Last week in Kansas, new cases dropped by 24% and deaths reduced by 73%, according to Norman. Positive test results also dropped by one-third with “fairly stable testing numbers,” Norman said.
Metro counties fill vaccine slots quickly
A shortage of COVID-19 vaccines continues to create a backlog in Kansas City metro counties. Miami County quickly filled all of its 440 spots, and by Monday morning, the health department’s phone line had overloaded and was no longer working.
Johnson County also booked all of its 7,500-plus slots for the week after announcing it would move to Phase 2 of distribution. Saline and Douglas counties ran out of appointments in around 30 minutes.
In the Kansas City metro, many counties have launched surveys for residents that will alert them when it’s their time to receive the shot.
Kansas governor extends disaster declaration
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday signed a bill that will extend the state’s disaster emergency declaration, allowing the state to continue to provide COVID-19 testing, support to food banks and personal protective equipment to hospitals, among other items.
The bill extends the declaration to March 31.
Royals’ spring training could be delayed
A high number of COVID-19 cases in the Surprise, Arizona, area could delay spring training for the Kansas City Royals, according to the Cactus League.
The league’s executive director on Monday urged Major League Baseball to delay the start of spring training due to the pandemic and number of cases in Maricopa County.
The Royals’ first spring training game is set for Feb. 27 against the Texas Rangers.
KC renters to receive assistance
Kansas City, Missouri, along with Jackson and Clay counties, will receive a total of $30 million from the federal government to help renters impacted by the pandemic.
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