New COVID cases across the Kansas City metro drop below 1,000 in the past week
For the first time since the omicron variant arrived in Kansas City, the metro area has reported fewer than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases in the past seven days. The milestone comes as patient and death numbers also continue to decline.
Local officials have reported 891 new COVID-19 cases in the past week, bringing the total number of cases in the Kansas City metro area up to 355,202 since the pandemic began. That’s lower than the 1,187 cases recorded last week, which was lower than the 1,618 the week before.
As of Tuesday, March 8, the rolling average of new COVID-19 cases across the metro area is around 127 per day over seven days, according to data tracked by The Star. That’s lower than last week’s average of 170, which was lower than the previous week’s average of 231.
There have been approximately 5.9 deaths per day in the last week, which is a lot lower than the 16.3 per day the previous week. Last week’s average included numbers from two state of Missouri audits that added a total of 630 previously uncounted COVID-19 deaths to the state’s totals. This week’s average includes one audit, which added 246 new deaths to the total.
Forty-one new deaths were reported this past week in the Kansas City area, including the audit we mentioned above. That brings the local death total up to 4,145 since the pandemic began. 114 deaths were recorded the previous week due to two state audits.
How are local hospitals holding up?
The University of Kansas Health System is treating 20 patients with active COVID-19 infections as of Tuesday, March 8. Two of these patients are in the ICU, with one of them on ventilators. That’s a lot lower than the 45 active cases the hospital was treating at this time last week.
“Our active infections numbers continue to decline, which is a very good thing,” said Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infectious disease prevention and control at The University of Kansas Health System in a news briefing on Tuesday, March 8.
Recent data from the Mid-America Regional Council, or MARC, shows hospitalization rates declining in the Kansas City area over the last several weeks. This trend offers some welcome relief to local hospitals, which struggled to meet patient needs amid staffing and supply shortages during the most recent pandemic wave.
How vaccinated is the Kansas City area?
Vaccination rates in the area are rising slowly, with 60.7% of the population fully vaccinated in the Kansas City region. Eastern Kansas has a higher vaccination rate, at 68.42%, than western Missouri does at 54.95%.
Getting vaccinated is still the most effective way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19, and experts recommend using increased caution if you are not yet vaccinated. Here’s how vaccinated different parts of Kansas City are, and here’s where to get a free vaccine or booster shot in the area.
Do you have more questions about staying safe from COVID-19 in Kansas City? Ask our Service Journalism team at kcq@kcstar.com.
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