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TUESDAY UPDATES: MUPD officer who tested positive for COVID-19 released from hospital

Al Bello

COVID-19 case numbers might differ among state and local health authorities because of issues with reporting and address verification.

UPDATE 7:00 P.M.: An officer with the University of Missouri Police Department who tested positive for COVID-19 has been released from the hospital.

The department posted a video on Facebook on Tuesday of Officer Pigford leaving University Hospital.

He was one of two MUPD officers to test positive for the virus in late March. The other officer had already recovered and returned to work.

UPDATE 4:15 P.M.: A worker at a Columbia McDonald's has tested positive for COVID-19, a local franchisee said Tuesday.

Mark Mehle told ABC 17 News in an emailed statement that the employee of the restaurant on Nifong Boulevard recently tested positive but did not give a date of the test. The employee is under medical care, Mehle wrote.

"As soon as we were notified of the confirmed case, we closed the restaurant and conducted a thorough sanitization procedure as well as notified local public health authorities," Mehle wrote. "Additionally, we identified and reached out to any restaurant staff who had been in contact with the employee who contracted the virus."

Mehle said employees who were exposed to the worker who tested positive have been asked to quarantine themselves at home for 14 days before coming back to work. Mehle said McDonald's closed down its lobby in mid-March and has taken other precautions to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Mehle wrote that employees are screened for symptoms before shifts and that they have been given gloves and masks.

UPDATE 3:50 P.M.: Boone County health officials reported another new case of COVID-19 on Tuesday.

Boone County is now up to 97 cases, according to local officials' totals. Of those cases, 91 patients have been released from isolation. Five cases are active.

County health officials have reported four new cases in the past week.

Boone County is operating under its own reopening order that is more strict than the state's order. Among the provisions is that businesses including large venues, bars and movie theaters remain closed.

Other businesses can remain open as long as they take special social distancing precautions and limit the number of people inside their building.

UPDATE 2:09 P.M.: The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said Tuesday that coronavirus-related deaths spiked to their highest level in a week and COVID-19 cases increased.

According to the health department website, 8,916 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 377 people have died from the virus.

It's an increase of 162 new cases and at least 19 new deaths. The spike in virus-related deaths was largest reported since April 28, of which 40 deaths had been reported.

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services

The health department said a delay in reporting the deaths led to the increased total.

A tweet from the health department said some of the cases added on Tuesday occurred between May 1-3.

The health department also reported an increase of COVID-19 cases in northwestern Missouri. A release sent out Tuesday afternoon said 412 workers at a St. Joseph meat plant had tested positive for novel coronavirus.

The release added that the more than 400 employees were asymptomatic for COVID-19. More than 2,300 employees were tested at the plant between April 27 and May 1.

COVID-19 cases in the county increased by more than 50 since yesterday.

The amount of cases reported is more than double all of the confirmed cases across Boone, Cole and Callaway counties.

As of Tuesday, health workers said two people in Buchanan County have died from COVID-19.

ORIGINAL: Hy-Vee supermarkets will limit meat purchases by customers starting Wednesday.

Hy-Vee in pre-dawn dark
Hy-Vee opens Thursday, March 19, 2020, allowing only people at high-risk from COVID-19 to shop for the first hour.

"At Hy-Vee, we have product available at our stores but due to worker shortages at plants as well as an increase in meat sales, customers may not find the specific items they are looking for," the company said in a news release.

Starting Wednesday customers will be limited to a combination of four packages of fresh meat products including beef, chicken and pork in a bid to prevent such shortages, the company said.

Several media sources have also reported that Kroger, which owns Gerbes stores, will limit meat purchases at some locations. However, it was not clear which locations would be affected.

Hy-Vee has stores in Columbia, Jefferson City and Osage Beach.

Article Topic Follows: Coronavirus

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