MONDAY UPDATES: Boone County reports fewest new cases since Aug. 17
UPDATE 4:45 P.M. Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services reported 13 new COVID-19 cases in the county Monday. That brings the total to 5,236 cases.
There were 36 fewer active cases of the virus with 329 cases being reported.
The health department reported 100 new recoveries bringing the total to 4,894 cases.
Currently, there are 70 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in our local hospitals, 18 of which are Boone County residents.
The number of patients in the ICU went down from 27 to 23 Monday. Sixteen of those cases are on a hospital ventilator.
Influenza data added to MHA’s COVID-19 dashboard
UPDATE 4:30 P.M.: The Missouri Hospital Association and Hospital Industry Data Institute added a new tab to their COVID-19 interactive dashboard, providing data on influenza and influenza-like illness.
The data will help hospitals manage health care resources during a flu season that will occur as COVID-19 continues to progress through Missouri communities.
Flu season occurs annually, and the severity varies year-to-year. One factor that can influence the rate of illness and the need for hospital and health care resources is vaccination. Unlike COVID-19, a seasonal flu vaccine is readily available to most Missourians.
This new addition to the dashboard also includes information on statewide vaccination rates, and flu and ILI prevalence throughout the past five years. This historical data confirms that our most severe flu outbreak years also were the years we had the lowest level of vaccination rates.
Boone County reports 13th COVID-19-related death
UPDATE 12:25 P.M.: The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services reported another COVID-19 death Monday.
The death in a person in their 80s brings the county's total since the pandemic began to 13. The death is the first reported in the county since Sept. 29, when the health department reported three deaths to bring the total to 12.
Boone County now has recorded 5,223 cases of the novel coronavirus since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March. New cases surged in late August and early September but have since fallen. The health department reported 25 new cases on Sunday and new daily cases have exceeded 50 just four times this month.
The five-day average of new daily cases in Boone County was 51 on Sunday, down from a peak of 143.4 on Sept. 4.
The number of COVID-19 patients in Boone County's hospitals has fallen to 58 from a record of 71 reported early this month. Of the current patients, 27 are in intensive care with 16 on ventilators, according to the county's online COVID-19 dashboard.
The drop in new COVID-19 cases has caused a case rate tracked by Columbia Public Schools to fall below levels at which administrators say students can return to classrooms. The Columbia Board of Education could vote Monday on whether to reopen classrooms.
The 6:30 p.m. school board meeting will stream live on our special coverage livestream page.
New cases reported in Blair Oaks R-II School District
ORIGINAL: The Blair Oaks R-II School District reported four new COVID-19 cases on Sunday.
The district said it was told Saturday that a fifth-grade student and a non-faculty high school football coach had tested positive for the virus.
The district said seven other students went into quarantine as close contacts of the fifth-grader. The football coach was not at the school Friday or Saturday, so the district said there was likely no exposure.
On Sunday, Blair Oaks then learned of two more student cases of the virus. Those cases led to nine other students sent to quarantine as close contacts.
