Children’s Mercy urges parents vaccinate kids as decline of new COVID cases slows in KC
The rolling average for new coronavirus cases in the Kansas City area slowed its decline over the past week.
As of Tuesday, the seven-day average of new cases was 228 in the region encompassing Kansas City and Jackson, Clay and Platte counties in Missouri and Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas, according to data kept by The Star. Overall, the average is still down compared to a month ago.
One week ago, that average was also about 232. A month ago, it was at 368.
During the University of Kansas Health System’s Morning Medical Update, Children’s Mercy Infectious Disease Division director Dr. Angela Myers joined pediatrician Dr. Stephen Lauer from The University of Kansas Health System to answer questions on the expected approval of vaccines for 5 to 11-year-olds.
Myers expected the vaccine to receive approval Tuesday with kids in that age group being able to get the vaccine within a few days. Most pediatrician’s offices are already setting up to distribute the vaccine.
Myers urged parents of children who are almost 12 years old not to wait to get the adult dose. Waiting only increases their risk of getting COVID. She said the child formula will provide up to 95% protection.
Height and weight are not as important as age in giving a vaccine for a virus, she said.
When it comes to the vaccine for children, Lauer said there are three kinds of parents in his clinic: those who can’t wait; those who will never get their kids vaccinated and those who still have questions about the vaccine.
Convincing parents with concerns will make the difference in whether kids get back to normal in school with no masks, he said.
In total, 203,520 residents in the metro have been infected with the virus since the pandemic began, while 3,140 people have died.
The University of Kansas Health System on Tuesday reported that there has been a drop in the number of COVID patients — 12 patients have the active virus and were being treated, down from 18 on Monday. Six of those patients were in the ICU, down from seven on Monday. Two were on ventilators.
Meanwhile, 24 other patients were still hospitalized because COVID, but were out of the acute infection phase. That was down from 29 on Monday.
On Tuesday, Kansas reported 435,933 infections to date, including 6,422 deaths. The monthly positive test rate was 7.5%.
Across the state, 53.3% of the population has been fully vaccinated.
Missouri has identified 704,212 infections to date, including 12,203 deaths. The seven-day positive test rate was 6.7%.
About 49.5% of the state’s population has been fully vaccinated.
Across the country, more than 46 million people have contracted COVID-19 and 747,296 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University.
