Ten Kansas City area health agencies ask the unvaccinated to mask up as COVID-19 surges
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On Friday 10 Kansas City-area hospitals and health officials issued a joint public health advisory again recommending members of the public wear masks.
The advisory, issued Friday afternoon, says unvaccinated individuals should wear a mask while visiting indoor public places, crowded outdoor settings, and for activities with close contact with others who are not fully vaccinated.
Both vaccinated and unvaccinated residents should exercise caution, the advisory says, but the statement does not say all vaccinated residents must wear masks. Individuals with underlying medical conditions should get fully vaccinated as soon as possible and wear masks when around persons of unknown vaccination status, the statement said.
Public health officials encouraged anyone over age 12 to get fully vaccinated. The unvaccinated remain the most at risk, specifically those who are immune-compromised. Adults should take extra precautions for children age under age 12, who presently cannot get vaccinated.
Concerns about the rising numbers of COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations and low vaccination rates prompted area chief medical officers along with 10 public health departments to issue the advisory.
The recommendation was made by health departments in Cass, Clay, Platte, Ray and Jackson counties in Missouri; Johnson, Leavenworth, Miami counties in Kansas as well as Kansas City and the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas
Frank Thompson, deputy director of the Kansas City Health Department, said the advisory was a recommendation, not a mandate or an order. Officials are reminding people to wear masks in public and practice social distancing.
“There is always a concern when you have a pandemic like this, that numbers start wind down, people start relaxing and that causes another turn back,” Thompson said. “This is yet another wave in this pandemic, just like the ones that are driven by people relaxing and not taking precautions.”
“This is something we were concerned about and unfortunately, it has come to pass,” he said.
Low vaccination rates in parts of the Kansas City region and across Kansas and Missouri have contributed to an accelerated spread of the delta variant of the virus, which is more easily transmitted and is more dangerous.
Low vaccination rates
Thompson said that some parts of Kansas City have a less than 40% vaccination rate. Those low numbers fall along the Troost - Prospect Avenue corridor and large portions of the east side of Kansas City.
The vaccination rate among Black men under 35 in Kansas City is only 17%, Thompson said. The rate for Black women in Kansas City in the same age group is roughly 22%.
During the first half of July, there have been over 800 new confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in Kansas City. Health officials say that is more than the number of new cases reported for the entire month of June.
Thompson said the daily average case count has tripled compared to a month ago. In the last three days, health officials have reported 114 or more new cases reported each day.
“We haven’t see that since early February,” he said. “We are really concerned that the trajectory we’re on could have us back to the numbers that we haven’t seen since January.”
Thompson said there is no immediate plan to impose restrictions on the capacity and operating hours of bars and restaurants. Health officials plan to meet with elected leaders to discuss the metrics they would consider to help make those decisions.
Hospitalizations up
The University of Kansas Health System on Thursday had 37 patients being treated for the virus, up from 29 on Wednesday. Nine patients were in the intensive care unit with four on ventilators.
On Thursday, the Kansas City Council approved a resolution requiring the health department to be more aggressive addressing the delta variant. Thompson said the delta variant is the dominate variant presently circulating across the city.
The rising number of cases and hospitalizations has doctors at The University of Kansas Health System worried.
“We’re in trouble, Kansas City,” chief medical officer Steve Stites said.
The metro, which includes Kansas City and Jackson, Clay and Platte counties in Missouri and Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas, added 300 new cases on Friday. In the past seven days, the area has added 1,831 cases.
“We’re going to come to a reckoning again at some point,” Stites said. “The reckoning is going to be for those who are unvaccinated, are we all going to have to put masks back on? I think that’s the question we’re going to be faced with and I think that question’s going to come up on us in the next one to two weeks.”
A back-to-school vaccination and COVID clinic will be held 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Smith Hale Middle School, 9010-A Old Santa Fe Road in south Kansas City. No appointment is required.
This story was originally published July 16, 2021 at 4:16 PM.
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