Coronavirus updates: Sedgwick County reports 20 new COVID-19 cases, but no new deaths

The Eagle has compiled a list of updates from Thursday on the coronavirus pandemic for the Wichita area. For updates from Wednesday, click here.

New Sedgwick County COVID-19 statistics

The Sedgwick County Health Department’s daily coronavirus report on Thursday showed 527 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 20 from Wednesday.

No local COVID-19 patients have died since the last report, so the death count remains at 20. There have been 322 patients who have recovered, which is an increase of six from the last report.

A person is considered to have recovered from COVID-19 if symptoms have been gone for three days or if a week has passed since symptoms started, whichever is longer.

Of the 527 cases, epidemiologists have determined about 65% had close contact with another confirmed case, about 24% are likely community spread, about 8% are travel-related and about 3% are under investigation.

Epidemiologists have not identified any new clusters in the county. There are 10 known clusters, including outbreaks at three long-term care facilities, three businesses, three religious centers and one correctional facility.

In Sedgwick County, at least 99 patients have been hospitalized and at least 71 have been discharged. The hospitalization data includes information through Saturday. County officials say there is a delay in hospitalization data reporting to ensure accuracy.

Indicators for personal protective equipment supplies in Sedgwick County show first responders and medical facilities are running low on surgical gowns and Tyvek coveralls, of which there is less than a three-week supply. There is less than a five-week supply of surgical masks and medical nitrile gloves. There is more than a five-week supply of N95 masks and testing supplies at the county health department.

The county reported that there are 7,541 cases in the state, which is an increase of 73. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment no longer provides daily updates on statewide coronavirus data.

Speedy Cash and Frontline Foods partner to feed healthcare workers

Speedy Cash, in partnership with Frontline Foods, has served hundreds of meals to healthcare workers in the Wichita area. In a news release, Speedy Cash said it gave $300,000 to Frontline Foods, which allowed the organization to open a “Wichita chapter and support other chapters in need.” Frontline Foods started in March 2020 to help raise money for local restaurants impacted by the crisis, enabling them to prepare meals for healthcare workers, the release says.

This story was originally published May 14, 2020 at 3:36 PM.