WEDNESDAY UPDATES: State of Missouri announces second round of MoVIP winners

The state of Missouri announced the second drawing winners of $10,000 in the state’s vaccine incentive program.

At the time of the second drawing, 566,151 MO VIP residents entered to win.

The state verified 177 winners of the 180 randomly selected. Alternate winners will receive the $10,000 prize if the state cannot verify the three winners.

“These Missourians are winners not only because they are receiving $10,000 but because, like 3.2 million other Missourians, they have stepped up to help protect themselves and those they care for from serious illness,” Gov. Mike Parson said. “We encourage Missourians to continue engaging in conversations with trusted health care professionals to learn when vaccination is right for them.”

With state and federal vaccination data combined, 62% of Missouri’s eligible population (12 and up) has now initiated vaccination. 

Once a Missourian enters, their entry is good through all the drawings. There is no need to enter more than once.

The next drawing will take place this Friday, but people must enter online before 11:59 p.m.

Boone County hospitals report under 100 COVID-19 patients

The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting one new coronavirus-related death. That brings the total number of deaths to 146. The individual was in the 30-34 age group and died Sept. 2.

The county is reporting 75 new COVID-19 cases.

There are currently 562 active cases in the county, a decrease of 82 from Tuesday. The county now has a reported total number of 23,474 COVID-19 cases.

The county reported 22,766 cases removed from isolation, an increase of 156.

Boone County ranks eighth in the state with the most coronavirus cases in total volume in the past week. Cases are up 5.7% on the week. The county has a 9.9% positive test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The health department's hospital status remains yellow, with 98 COVID-19 patients in Boone County hospitals and 20 of them being Boone County residents.

The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports that 101,833 residents have received their first dose in Boone County and 90,986 Boone County residents have completed their vaccine doses. Boone County has the largest percentage of county residents in Mid-Missouri that have received at least one dose of the vaccine with 56.4%. The second closest county in the state is St. Louis County with 55.5%.

Boone County is first in the state with a reported 50.4% of residents that have completed their coronavirus vaccine doses. St. Louis County is the second county in the state with 49.4% of residents have completed the doses for vaccination. The city of Joplin has 53% of the population fully vaccinated.

Cole County has the second-highest first vaccination rate in Mid-Missouri with 48.8%. Montgomery County is third with 44.7%.

The Columbia Public Schools reports active coronavirus and quarantine cases to their website daily.

CPS reports nine district facilities (an elementary school, two middle schools, two high schools and four other facilities) currently have staff out because of COVID-19. There is two staff at elementary, two staff at middle school, two at the high school and five at other districtwide facilities that have tested positive for the coronavirus. The district has three staff currently quarantined because of COVID.

The district reports 32 district facilities have students currently out due to the coronavirus. There are 19 out of 21 elementary, all middle and high schools and two districtwide facilities affected.

There are 64 students that have tested positive for COVID-19, a drop of five cases from Tuesday. The district is reporting 36 students in elementary, 12 students in middle school, 15 students in High School and one at a districtwide facility have tested positive for the coronavirus.

There are 306 students, which are required to quarantine due to the coronavirus, 10 students were able to leave quarantine. The district reports 165 elementary students are currently quarantining, 90 students in middle school and 48 students in high school.

Cole County reports 30 new coronavirus cases

The Cole County Health Department reported 30 new coronavirus cases.

According to the dashboard update, there are 10,572 residential cases and 284 long-term care facility resident cases. That is 10,856 total cases in the county.

Cole County has the highest number of coronavirus deaths in Mid-Missouri with 146. The county did not report any new deaths Wednesday.

Cole County ranks 39th in the state for counties with the most coronavirus cases per capita in the past week. Cases are down 3% comparing the last week to the prior week. The county has an 11.8% positive test rate, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports about 48.8% of the county have initiated their first dose of the vaccine and 43.9% of the county's population have been fully vaccinated.

The Jefferson City School District reports four new coronavirus student cases Wednesday. The district has nine active coronavirus cases in students and six active cases in staff.

The district is reporting five close contacts for students and one close contact for staff.

Thousands get COVID in first weeks of school in Missouri

Thousands of Missouri children have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the new school year began, and at least one rural school closed for cleaning after an outbreak, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.

A map on the state's COVID-19 dashboard breaks down virus cases among people aged 5-19 within each school district's geographic boundaries. The map shows nearly two dozen districts with at least 41 new cases over the past 14 days. The data from the map for local districts is also available on the ABC 17 News Return to Learn page.

Combined, those districts alone have 2,964 illnesses. They include 173 cases in Kansas City and 172 in St. Louis city. Double-digit cases are reported in dozens of other districts. The total number of illnesses among students and staff statewide isn't posted.

The state reported 89 cases in Columbia Public Schools over the past two weeks. A CPS website reported 306 students in quarantine and 64 positive student cases Wednesday.

Jefferson City has reported 60 cases.

Missouri adds more than 2,500 new COVID-19 cases

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services added hundreds of new COVID-19 cases to its totals on Wednesday.

According to the data from the state, 1,690 patients tested positive for the virus through the use of PCR testing. Antigen testing revealed another 820 new probable cases.

The state's seven-day positivity rate remains unchanged at 11.2%

Missouri also added 154 new coronavirus-related deaths. The state health department reported Tuesday night 132 of those deaths were discovered during a weekly check of death certificates.

Officials said more than 110 of the deaths happened in August.

According to the state health department, at least 3.2 million Missourians have started the process to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

That's 52.3% of Missouri's population.

More than 24,570 people across the state have received their third dose of the coronavirus vaccine.