COVID-19 cases increasing in Columbia

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

COVID-19 cases are on the rise in Columbia, according to Missouri's Sewershed Surveillance Program and health officials.

According to water waste trends, areas like Jefferson City, Springfield, Wentzville and around Kansas City have seen an increase in positive or probable cases of 40% from last week. Some have increased 25% or more in the past two weeks since data was collected.

As of July 8, the project reported more than 1,100 positive or probable cases statewide.

Dr. Laura Morris, chief medical officer for ambulatory care with MU Health Care, said MU Health has experienced an uptick in positive cases in recent weeks.

"Last week we had eight patients with COVID admitted to the hospital and compared to, say, a month ago, we had two to three patients on average that had COVID at any time in the hospital," Morris said.

Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services public information specialist, Austin Krohn says the department has also seen an increase in cases.

"we've seen 58 cases as of July 20th," said Krohn. "280 cases from May 17th to July 20th, so there has been a spike there's also a new variant going around but we don't know how that's affecting the case numbers, it might be completely irrelevant, we're not entirely sure."

The department doesn't track individual variants.

Morris said while the number of patients MU Health Care admits may be low, it does not reflect a truly accurate number of positive cases in the area because people are not getting tested for the virus as often.

"Many people are not seeking out testing, they might be testing at home or they might not be testing at all," Morris said. "So COVID continues to circulate at a pretty high level."

Krohn says getting tested and reporting it to official agencies that keep track of COVID-19 is important for yourself and others.

"It's incredibly important," said Krohn. "The state has to track who has COVID and who doesn't, we want to stop that transmission and we see a spike right now we want to nip that in the bud as quick as we can."

Morris identified travel and events as two main causes of this recent increase.

"The number of people who are traveling this summer is of record proportions and there's a lot of people getting on airplanes, getting on public transportation going to crowded settings like concerts and amusement parks," Morris said. "People are in close proximity and not doing the same type of strict precautions and testing and isolation that we did in previous parts of the pandemic leads to people spreading the virus, unintentionally and maybe even unknowingly."

Krohn said the increase could be from gatherings and the heat forcing people to stay inside.

"Some larger indoor gatherings could be part of it, you know, we have pretty extensive heat going on," said Krohn. "A lot of people are just getting together potentially, July 4th was a few weeks ago, just a lot of close gatherings."

Morris also says people not getting updated vaccines is also a contributing factor to the increase.

"When we see people in the hospital, it is, by and large, those who have not received an updated dose," Morris said. She said making sure your vaccinations are up to date can help prevent the spread of the disease along with washing your hands, covering your mouth when you cough and staying home when you don't feel good.

"As a health care worker, I have the opportunity to share infections with people much more vulnerable than myself so I have to keep that in mind and make sure to stay home until my symptoms have passed," Morris said.

Morris said the main demographic of patients that need hospital treatment tend to be older people or have other medical conditions that put them at risk. However, it still spreads to younger people and can impact the older generation.

Morris said an updated dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will soon become available, which Krohn says plays a big role in protecting yourself and others from COVID-19.

"The biggest thing to do is stay up on your Covid vaccinations, again, if you're going to have a large gathering, stay outdoors., air purification, fresh air getting into the home," said Krohn. "If you are sick, obviously stay home we don't want you to be around other people."

Krohn says you must be fever-free without the use of medication for 24 hours before you can leave your home. It is preferred you wear a mask for up to five days after, according to Krohn.

As of July 13 out of 1,512 COVID-19 tests taken in Missouri, 13.2% have tested positive in the past week according to the CDC.