‘There’s good news’: COVID cases are falling in Kansas City. Is this the end of omicron?
Case numbers of COVID-19 are finally starting to decline in the Kansas City area, according to data collected by The Star.
While new infections are decreasing, hospitalizations and deaths remain high and will likely stay that way for at least a few more weeks. Hospitalizations typically follow around two weeks behind trends in case numbers, while deaths occur roughly a week after that.
Is the end to this pandemic wave in sight?
Local experts say that COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are beginning to fall in Kansas City.
“From the regional MARC data, it does seem like our cases around here have peaked and are on the downtrend,” said Dr. Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease specialist at The University of Kansas Health System in a news briefing on Tuesday, Feb. 1. “Hospitalizations seem to be on the downtrend as well, from their data. So I think overall, there’s good news.”
MARC stands for the Mid-America Regional Council, which collects data on issues impacting the Midwest. You can view their COVID-19 dashboard here.
Hawkinson added that hospitals will continue to see day to day fluctuations in patient numbers, and encouraged the public to watch seven-day case averages rather than more variable daily data.
What do Kansas City’s COVID numbers look like this week?
As of Tuesday, the rolling average of new COVID-19 cases across the metro area is around 1,840 per day over seven days, according to data tracked by The Star. That’s much lower than last week’s average of 3,294. There have been approximately 12.4 deaths per day in the last week, down from 18.4 per day the previous week.
Local officials have reported 15,882 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, bringing the total number of cases in the Kansas City metro area up to 338,620 since the pandemic began. That’s lower than the 23,062 cases recorded last week.
Eighty-seven deaths were reported in the past week, bringing the local death total up to 3,782 since the pandemic began. That’s lower than the 129 deaths recorded the previous week, which was unusually high due to a Missouri data audit and reporting delays from Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend.
While this count is lower than last week, 87 deaths in one week is still much higher than totals we were seeing earlier in the omicron surge. That’s because death trends follow roughly three weeks behind case number trends. We’ll likely continue to see high death numbers for at least a few more weeks in the area.
How are hospitals holding up?
The University of Kansas Health System is treating 109 patients with active COVID-19 infections as of Tuesday, Feb. 1. Twenty-eight of these patients are in the ICU, with 16 on ventilators. That’s similar to last week’s count of 117 active cases.
While case numbers may be dropping, hospitals aren’t out of the woods yet. Here are some ways you can support healthcare workers, and five steps you can take to help ease the pressure on overwhelmed hospitals.
Do you have more questions about staying safe from COVID-19 in Kansas City? Ask our Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.
.jpg)