COVID cases keep dropping in KC, but hospital numbers are still high. Here’s the data
As of Tuesday, Feb. 8, the rolling average of new COVID-19 cases across the metro area is around 998 per day over seven days, according to data tracked by The Star. That’s a lot lower than last week’s average of 1,840. There have been approximately 12.9 deaths per day in the last week, which is similar to 12.4 per day the previous week.
Local officials have reported 6,983 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, bringing the total number of cases in the Kansas City metro area up to 345,603 since the pandemic began. That’s lower than the 15,882 cases recorded last week, which itself was lower than 23,062 the week before.
Ninety deaths were reported in the past week, bringing the local death total up to 3,872 since the pandemic began. That’s a little higher than the 87 deaths recorded last week. This is due in part to a state of Missouri audit on Monday, Feb. 7, that added 336 previously uncounted COVID-19 deaths to the state’s totals.
While new infections are decreasing rapidly, hospitalizations and deaths remain high and will likely stay that way for at least a couple more weeks. Hospitalizations typically follow around two weeks behind trends in case numbers, while deaths occur roughly a week after that.
How are hospitals holding up?
The University of Kansas Health System is treating 80 patients with active COVID-19 infections as of Tuesday, Feb. 8. Twenty of these patients are in the ICU, with seven on ventilators. That’s lower than last week’s numbers.
Hospitals are still experiencing high occupancy despite more beds being available. 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.
This story was originally published February 9, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
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