WEDNESDAY UPDATES: Boone County active coronavirus cases rises to 744; highest since Jan. 25
The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services reported 101 new COVID-19 cases.
There are currently 744 active cases in the county, an increase of 37 from Tuesday. Boone County's 744 active cases is the highest since Jan. 25 when 770 cases were reported. The county now has a reported total number of COVID-19 cases of 20,292.
The county reported 19,430 cases removed from isolation, an increase of 153 from Tuesday.
Boone County ranks fifth in the state with the most coronavirus cases per capita in the past week. Cases are up 8.2% on the week. The county has a 13.3% positive test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
The positivity rate of the county for the week of July 9 through July 15 is 40.
The health department's hospital status remains in yellow, with 83 COVID-19 patients in Boone County hospitals and 14 of them being Boone County residents. Of those, 34 are in intensive care and 14 are on ventilators.
The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard is reporting that 94,142 residents have received their first dose in Boone County and 83,597 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 52.2%. The second closest county in the state is St. Louis County with 50.7%.
Boone County is first in the state with a reported 46.3% of residents that have completed their coronavirus vaccine doses. St. Louis County is second in the state with 44.6% of residents have completed the doses for vaccination.
Cole County has the second-highest first vaccination rate in Mid-Missouri with 43.2%. Montgomery County is third with 38.4%.
Cole County reports 106 coronavirus cases
Cole County Health Department reported 106 new coronavirus cases Wednesday. The county is also reporting one new case at a long-term care facility.
According to the dashboard update, there have been 8,871 resident cases and 271 long-term care facility resident cases.
That brings a total of 9,142 total cases in the county.
The county has reported 126 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic started.
While the cases were reported today, two cases were backdated to July 11.
Cole County ranks No. 11 in the state for counties with the most coronavirus cases per capita in the past week. However, cases are down 2.5% on the week after a recent surge there. The county has a 20.6% positive test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
Randolph, Macon counties part of new state coronavirus advisory
Randolph and Macon counties in Mid-Missouri are included in a state health department advisory about rising coronavirus cases in the area.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services issued an advisory Wednesday for Adair, Macon and Randolph counties. The advisory warns of increasing coronavirus cases in the area and the chance for the delta variant to move up Highway 63 from its hot spot in southwest Missouri.
The state says Adair County has recorded 69 cases in the two weeks, with Macon County logging 39 and Randolph tallying 75 new cases. Macon and Randolph counties have vaccination rates under 30% and Adair's rate is 33.3%. The state average is 40%.
Cases in Randolph County have more than doubled over the last week, according to state data. The positive test rate there for the last week is higher than 15%.
Missouri's COVID-19 cases and positivity reach mid-January levels
The state health dashboard recorded 2,229 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus Wednesday, the highest single-day count since mid-January.
Since the pandemic began, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has confirmed a total of 549,191 cases of COVID-19.
The seven-day COVID-19 positivity rate also reached 14.2%, the highest rate recorded since the middle of January this year.
An additional 766 probable cases of the virus were added to the dashboard Wednesday, bringing the total number of probable cases found through antigen testing to 103,199.
Eight more Missourians died from COVID-19, pushing the pandemic's death toll in the state up to 9,526.
'Red zone' report shows 80% of Missouri counties with high levels of transmission
According to the latest state profile report, Missouri remains in the "red zone" with more than 90 counties in the high transmission level of COVID-19.
The report released Tuesday shows 93 out of 115 counties are in the "red zone" with high transmission including Boone, Cole, Cooper, Moniteau, Audrain, Osage, and Randolph counties.
The latest report also shows Missouri with a 45% increase in new cases across the state, a 31% increase in hospitalizations, and a 67% increase in deaths last week.
