FRIDAY UPDATES: Boone County reports nine new coronavirus cases; one person now in the ICU
The Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting that nine new coronavirus cases were added to the information hub on Friday. The county delays reporting cases by two days. The nine new cases are the largest increase since March 21.
The dashboard is showing 16 COVID-19 patients in Boone County hospitals. Of the 16 patients, one patient is in the ICU or no patient is on a ventilator.
The county has reported 42,842 since the pandemic began. The county has reported 13,963 cases since 2022 started.
Boone County is reported to have a low COVID-19 community level, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS).
The Columbia Public Schools reports active coronavirus and quarantine cases to their website daily.
The district reported a 4.3 14-day rate for last Tuesday.
CPS reports 15 district facilities (seven elementary schools, four middle schools, one high school and three other district-wide facilities) currently have staff out because of COVID-19.
The district is reporting 13 coronavirus cases in staff across the district. The breakdown in staff shows six staff members at an elementary school, four staff members at middle schools, one staff member at the high school and two staff members at district-wide facilities who have tested positive for COVID-19. Three staff members at elementary schools have to quarantine due to being in close contact.
The district reported seven district facilities that have reported coronavirus cases in students. In the district, there are four out of 21 elementary schools, two out of seven middle schools and one out of four high schools have reported coronavirus cases in students.
There is no active coronavirus cases in the district however there are 11 that are currently quarantined due to COVID. The district is reporting three cases at the elementary school level, seven at the middle school level and one at the high school level that is currently in quarantine.
Cole County reports no cases in five out of the last 11 days
The Cole County Health Department reported one new coronavirus case on Friday.
According to the dashboard update, there are 17,026 residential cases and 331 long-term care facility resident cases. That is 17,357 total cases in the county since March 2020.
The county has reported 200 coronavirus deaths since the pandemic began.
The Missouri coronavirus vaccine dashboard reports Cole County as having a low COVID-19 community level.
The Jefferson City School District reported no new coronavirus case in a student or in a staff member on Thursday.
The district is reporting one active case in a student and no active case in a staff member.
Missouri moves to endemic COVID reporting
The state of Missouri has moved to the endemic phase of the coronavirus pandemic on Friday. The state has changed its daily reporting to focus more on regional-based reporting.
The state health department is reporting 1,131 cases in the past seven days.
The dashboard is now reporting statewide cases and deaths by the week. The state has reported 638 cases for the week of March 27 and one death for the week.
The dashboard is showing COVID community levels for the central region to be low with cases down 31.6% compared to last week. The central region includes Howard, Boone, Audrain, Montgomery, Gasconade, Osage, Cole, Callaway, Miller, Camden, Morgan, Moniteau and Cooper County. Maries County is considered in the southwest region. Pettis and Saline County are considered in the Kansas City region. Pettis County is the only county in our region to be considered in the medium COVID community level; the rest are considered in the low level.
COVID-19 hospitalizations are also trending down, with the state reporting 477 patient hospitalizations.
The omicron variant remains the dominant variant in Missouri. As of March 13, the state is reporting the B.1.1.529 lineage has 2.9%, the BA.1.1 has 45.7% and the BA.2 variant has 51.4%.
