MONDAY UPDATES: Missouri DHSS adds 66 coronavirus related deaths after analyzing death certificates

Missouri DHSS has added 66 COVID-19 related deaths after state’s disease surveillance system analyzed several death certificates.

Officials say the deaths will be captured and reported publicly through the dashboard Tuesday morning.

Of the 46 deaths:

• one in October
• one in December
• six in January
• one in February
• nine in March
• 48 in April

Officials at DHSS report the weekly activity typically causes a sharp increase in the deaths added to Missouri’s total the following day. DHSS is now regularly analyzing death certificates on Mondays.

Officials say the state does not track probable or pending deaths.

Over one-third of Boone County residents have received their second dose of coronavirus vaccine

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting five new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, seven on Sunday and two cases for Monday.

There are currently 64 active cases in the county.

The county now has a reported total number of COVID-19 cases of 18,315.

The county has reported the total number of cases removed from isolation is 18,165.

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services dashboard has reported the latest five-day average as eight.

The county continues to trend down as there have been 95 straight days of single or double-digit case increases.

The health department is reporting the total number of hospitalizations in Boone County is 13.

The health department is reporting two Boone County residents are in the hospital due to the coronavirus.

The dashboard is reporting one COVID-19 patient in the ICU and one patient on a ventilator.

The hospital status remains in 'Green' status. 'Green' status is when hospitals are operating within licensed bed capacity; accepting patient transfers from referring hospitals within standard care operating procedures.

The State of Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard is reporting that 79,971 residents have received their first dose in Boone County and 61,638 Boone County residents have completed their vaccine doses.

Boone County has the largest percentage of people in Mid-Missouri that have received at least one dose of the vaccine with 44.3%. The second closest in the state is St. Louis County with 40.3%.

Boone County is now first in the state with a reported 34.2% of residents that have completed their coronavirus vaccine doses. Atchison County is second in the state with 33.4% of residents have completed the doses for vaccination.

Cole County has the second-highest first vaccination rate in Mid-Missouri with 35.4%. Montgomery County is third with 32.2%.

Community vaccination clinics to be held in Sturgeon, Harrisburg and Hallsville this week

The Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services will host three community vaccination clinics in Sturgeon, Harrisburg and Hallsville this week.

The events will be in:

• Sturgeon

Sturgeon Youth Center
209 S. Turner St., Sturgeon MO 65284
Tuesday, May 4
3 to 6 p.m.

• Harrisburg

Harrisburg Lion’s Club
120 E. Sexton St., Harrisburg, MO 65256
Wednesday, May 5
3 to 6 p.m.

• Hallsville

Hallsville Community Center
324 E. Highway OO, Hallsville, MO 65255
Thursday, May 6
3:30-6:30 p.m.

There be no wait at these clinics as there is no appointment required.

The clinics will have the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, so anyone 16 and older is eligible. However, a parental consent form is required for individuals aged 16 and 17.

The vaccination is free and health insurance is not required.

St. Louis loosens COVID-19 restrictions ahead of Boone County pandemic update

Leaders of St. Louis announced loosened COVID-19 restrictions Monday morning.

County Executive Sam Page and St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones held a briefing to discuss the changes. They cited increasing vaccine supply among the reasons for the relaxation of guidelines.

Effective immediately, businesses can operate at 100% capacity, provided that social distancing is maintained.

Bars, restaurants and nightclubs can also remain open until their normal closing times, the latest of which is 3 a.m.

Additionally, the new order changes the requirements for masking outdoors following updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Now, masks are not required for individuals who are fully vaccinated, those who are maintaining social distance, and individuals who are with others who are fully vaccinated.

St. Louis' new health order comes ahead of Boone County's community briefing regarding the future of health orders. Columbia and Boone County officials will also discuss the current state of COVID-19 cases.

Boone County's briefing is scheduled for 3 p.m. Monday.

Missouri's COVID-19 positivity rate remains above five

The Show-Me State's 7-day COVID-19 positivity rate remained at 5.1 percent Monday.

In a dashboard update Monday morning, Missouri's Department of Health and Senior Services reported an additional 225 new coronavirus cases confirmed through PCR testing, bringing the total during the pandemic to 503,303.

DHSS also 99 new probable cases of COVID-19 found through antigen testing. Throughout the pandemic, 83,685 probable cases of the virus have been detected through this method.

State health officials did not report any additional deaths due to COVID-19, keeping the total at 8,745.

The percentage of Missourians initiating coronavirus vaccinations remained at 37.7%, while the actual number increased by a little more than 2,000. According to the state's dashboard, 2,316,315 Missourians have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

Across the state, 28.7% of residents have completed vaccination.

Boone County remains at the top of all jurisdictions in Missouri for both the percentage of residents initiating and completing vaccination. The dashboard showed 44.3% of Boone Countians have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccination, while 34.2% completed vaccination.

Meanwhile, another mid-Missouri county is ranked last for the same statistics.

In Pulaski County, 10.7% of residents have initiated the vaccination process, while only 8.4% have completed it.