Kansas coronavirus deaths hit 100; Sedgwick County has 248 of state’s 1,986 cases

The coronavirus death count now numbers 100 people in Kansas, public health officials said.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s daily COVID-19 update on Monday showed the state has 1,986 cases with 248 of those in Sedgwick County. The number of positive tests in the state is up 137, and Sedgwick County is up 16.

On Sunday, KDHE reported 1,849 cases and 92 deaths. Sedgwick County had 232 cases.

In the Monday update, at least 405 people have been hospitalized statewide. However, hospitalization data is not available for all cases.

Patients in Kansas range in age from infant to 99 years old with a median of 51 and an average of 51.

There have been 16,775 negative tests.

There have been 2,489 tests administered in Sedgwick County. The local testing rate of 4.82 people per 1,000 population continues to lag behind the Kansas City area.

In the Wichita area, Reno County has 14 cases and a testing rate of 5.92. Butler County has 12 and 3.84, Harvey County has five and 3.80, Sumner County has three and 2.93, Cowley County has one and 3.29, and Kingman County has zero and 3.36.

In the Kansas City area, Wyandotte County has 427 cases — the most in the state — and a testing rate of 10.86. Johnson County has 377 and 6.37, Leavenworth County has 135 and 11.51, and Douglas County has 43 and 9.10.

In statewide cases where race and ethnicity data are available, the black community continues to be disproportionately impacted. The rate of infection among black or African American people is more than triple the infection rate in white people. The death rate for black people is more than seven times the death rate for white people.

The Sedgwick County Health Department reports that four local patients have died and 128 have recovered. Of the 250 patients listed in the county’s daily report, 33 cases are travel-related, 118 had close contact with another patient, 75 are likely community spread and 24 are under investigation.

In other Kansas coronavirus news:

Justice Department grant money

U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister announced that Kansas received $6 million in grants from the Department of Justice. An additional $3.2 million has been allocated for local jurisdictions in the state. The money will be used to address public safety challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.

“This money can be used to support a broad range of activities to prevent, prepare for and respond to coronavirus,” McAllister said in a statement. “That includes overtime, supplies such as gloves, masks and sanitizer and addressing the medical needs of inmates in prisons, jails and detention centers.”

Third KDOC prison has COVID-19 case

A third Kansas Department of Corrections prison has had a coronavirus case. One staff member at Topeka Correctional Facility has tested positive. Other state prisons that have had cases are Lansing Correctional Facility and Wichita Work Release Facility.

“Our corrections staff are committed to their work of preparing our residents for a successful return to their communities,” KDOC Secretary Jeff Zmuda said in a statement. “Our staff take that responsibility very seriously and we will continue to work with KDHE to ensure that we are conducting ourselves in a way that ensures the health and safety of everyone.”

New Kansas flu numbers

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reports 135 people with influenza have died so far this flu season, up five deaths from last week. In the weekly update statistics released on Monday, the KDHE reported 107 deaths were directly caused by the flu, and the flu was a contributing cause of death in another 28 cases.

The death count for the 2019-20 flu season has surpassed the 97 people who died in the last flu season, which runs from Sept. 1 to May 31. The percentage of total patients at Kansas health care facilities with influenza-like illness peaked in February.

The World Health Organization director general said last month that coronavirus causes a more severe disease than seasonal influenza and the death rate of infected patients is much higher. Additionally, there are vaccines and treatments for the flu, but not for COVID-19.

This story was originally published April 20, 2020 at 12:13 PM.