TUESDAY UPDATES: Cole County back in double digits for new COVID-19 cases
UPDATE 6:15 P.M.: Cole County's new COVID-19 cases climbed back into the double digits Tuesday.
The Cole County Health Department reported 11 new cases Tuesday for a total of 420 since the pandemic began. Active cases remained at 73 as recoveries offset the new cases.
The county reported just one new case each day Sunday and Monday after setting a record with 26 cases Thursday. The county again came close to the record Friday by reporting 22 cases.
Cole County has seen a surge in cases in July and August, coinciding with more cases being reported statewide. However, the county's positive rate for the entire pandemic remains below 3 percent.
Unlike Boone County, Cole County does not report weekly updates in the positive test rate.
Callaway County reported a large jump in cases over the weekend, recording 22 between Thursday and Monday. The county recorded another four cases Tuesday. Callaway County's active cases were at 51 on Tuesday, with total cases at 152.
Cases have also been growing quickly in Pettis County, which logged 14 on Tuesday. Active cases went up there by five to reach 117.
Other area counties reporting new cases Tuesday include Audrain and Miller.
Boone County's daily cases hit 30 or above for fourth time in two weeks
UPDATE 4:55 P.M.: The rolling average of new daily cases in Boone County went up Tuesday as the county recorded at least 30 cases for just the fourth time in the past two weeks.
The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services reported 33 new cases Tuesday to bring Boone County's total to 1,462 since the pandemic began.
Tuesday's count was the highest since Sunday, when 53 new cases were reported. The record is 59 on Aug. 1.
Despite the large increase in new cases, active cases went up only five to reach 221 as recoveries offset most of the new cases. The health department reported 588 people were in quarantine because they've had close contact with an infected person.
The department has begun reporting the average number of cases per 10,000 people over the last 14 days on its online COVID-19 dashboard. Columbia Public Schools is using that metric to determine whether it will have classes entirely in-person, entirely online or a mix of the two when school begins Sept. 8.
If cases per 10,000 are at nine or below, schools will go to all in-person classes. If the number is between 10 and 49, the district will go with a hybrid. If the number is 50 or higher, all school buildings will be shut down.
The 33-case increase comes on the same day officials from the city, the health department, CPS and the University of Missouri held a news conference to talk about the summer case surge and the beginning of school.
Boone County's five-day rolling average of new daily cases rose to 28.8 on Tuesday. The number was at 25.6 on Monday.
The rate of positive cases compared to all tests administered in Boone County has been rising since mid-July and was at 9.7 percent for the week ending Thursday -- the latest numbers published on the health department's dashboard.
The county's hospitals reported 24 patients with COVID-19. However, they reported no shortages in staff or equipment.
State drops below 1,000 new COVID-19 cases as positive rate increases
ORIGINAL: Missouri reported fewer than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases for the third time in five days Tuesday but the rate of people testing positive for the novel coronavirus increased nearly 1 percent.
The state reported 981 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19 Tuesday, bringing the total number of cases since the pandemic began to 60,935.
The state reported five more deaths in the last 24 hours for a total of 1,312.
The positive rate -- a percentage of coronavirus tests given that return positive results -- averaged 11.6 percent over the last seven days, state health officials reported. That number was at 10.8 percent Monday.
The rate has trended upward over several weeks as the state continues to experience a summer surge in cases. Officials have said many of those cases are in younger people who are less vulnerable to the worst effects of COVID-19.
The average age of those testing positive over the last week is 41, according to the state's online COVID-19 dashboard.
Local counties have also experienced a surge in cases, with Maries County now in the top-10 for fastest growth. Boone County is now in the top 10 for total cases.
Hospitalizations, which experts say is a key indicator of the severity of the virus, fell by nearly 100 on Saturday, the last day for which a number is available. The state reported 840 hospitalizations Saturday, down from 923 on Friday.
