THURSDAY UPDATES: Boone County reports 74 new coronavirus cases; one new coronavirus-related death
The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services reported one new coronavirus-related death. There have been 187 since the first recorded death in March 2020. The individual was in the 50-54 age group and died Dec. 17.
The county has reported 74 new COVID-19 cases Thursday.
There are currently 616 active cases in the county and 28,136 cases since the pandemic began. The county reported 27,333 cases removed from isolation.
Boone County ranks 11th in the state with the most coronavirus cases in total volume in the past week. Cases are up 5.6% when comparing last week to the prior week. The county has a 9.6% positivity test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS).
The health department's hospital status is yellow with 95 COVID-19 patients in Boone County hospitals and 13 of them being Boone County residents. Of the 95 patients, 28 are in intensive care and 13 are on ventilators.
The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports that 113,656 residents have received their first dose in Boone County and 100,184 Boone County residents have completed their vaccine doses.
Boone County has the third-largest percentage of county residents in Missouri that have received at least one dose of the vaccine with 63%. The largest county in the state is St. Louis County with 67%.
Boone County is third in the state with a reported 55.5% of residents that have completed their coronavirus vaccine doses. St. Louis County is the first county in the state with 59.2% of residents having completed the doses for vaccination. The city of Joplin has 60.3% of the population fully vaccinated.
Cole County has the second-highest first vaccination rate in Mid-Missouri with 53.6%. Callaway County is third with 49.6%.
Cole County reports 37 new coronavirus cases
The Cole County Health Department reported 37 new coronavirus cases from Thursday.
According to the dashboard update, there are 12,390 residential cases and 292 long-term care facility resident cases. That is 12,682 total cases in the county.
Cole County has reported 170 coronavirus deaths since the pandemic began.
Cole County ranks 49th in the state for counties with the most coronavirus cases per 100,000 in the past week. Cases are down 1.2% when comparing last week to the prior week. The county has reported an 11.6% positivity test rate, Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports about 53.6% of the county have initiated their first dose of the vaccine and 49.4% of the county's population have been fully vaccinated.
Missouri adds over 5,000 coronavirus cases before Christmas Eve
The state of Missouri reported 6,468 new and probable coronavirus cases Thursday.
The state of Missouri’s daily average of new coronavirus cases has gone back up to a 2,195 seven-day average (15,364 confirmed cases from the previous week of reporting) as the state reports new coronavirus cases across the state according to state health department reporting. The daily average looks at the last seven days and doesn't account for the past three days, which will push that number even higher.
The state reported 5,160 new coronavirus cases through PCR testing and another 1,308 probable cases identified in antigen testing for Wednesday, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services coronavirus dashboard. Missouri has now reported 792,757 confirmed cases for the pandemic and more than 184,126 probable cases.
The state recorded 29 more confirmed deaths for 12,964 and no new probable deaths for 2,916 total.
Missouri's new cases are up 9.3% over the past week, the state reports, as recent cases surge nationwide.
The rate of positive tests was at 13.4% for the last week.
Cole, Pettis, Callaway, Osage, Moniteau, Miller and Saline counties are all in the top 40 Missouri counties in new cases per capita over the last week, according to state statistics.
The state reports that over 2.36% (a .03 increase from Wednesday) of vaccinated Missourians have developed COVID-19 infections.
Experts continue to tout vaccination as the best tool to fight the wave of new cases. Still, new vaccinations have effectively stalled in Missouri, with more boosters being given daily than first or second shots. The state reported Thursday that 53.4% of Missouri residents are fully vaccinated.
COVID-19 hospitalizations are also trending upward, with the state reporting 29% of total hospital capacity and 20% of ICU capacity remaining. Those numbers are at 37% and 31% in Central Missouri, respectively.
MU Health Care coronavirus test site to close for holiday
The MU Health Care coronavirus testing site in Columbia will close down Friday and Saturday to observe Christmas.
The site at 2003 W. Broadway is MU Health Care's primary coronavirus testing site. It will reopen at 8 a.m. Sunday, according to a news release. Appointments are not needed.
The organization's clinics will also be closed Friday, reopening Monday. Urgent care locations will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and closed Saturday.
MU Health Care has been the primary spot for coronavirus testing in the Columbia area during the pandemic. MU Health has processed nearly 230,000 tests over that span, with more than 23,000 positive results. MU Health Care's hospitals were treating 64 COVID-19 patients as of Thursday, with another 27 patients whose test results are pending.
