Number of Kansas counties at high COVID-19 level jumps to 9. See the latest CDC map
Nine Kansas counties are at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s high COVID-19 community level as of Friday, more than double the number last week.
Rawlins, Greeley, Wichita, Hodgeman, Ford, Grey, Meade, Clark and Wilson counties are all at high. Ten counties are at medium community level, while Sedgwick stays at low for another week.
The CDC updates the metric each Thursday for U.S. counties and bases the assessment on the number of new cases and hospitalizations per 100,000 people (seven-day totals) and the percent of staffed hospital beds occupied by COVID-positive patients (a seven-day average).
In counties at high, the CDC recommends masking in public, indoor places and on public transportation. The same recommendation is made at medium levels for those at risk of more severe illness.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment has 12 counties in its high COVID-19 incident rate. Counties in that rate have 100 or more positive cases out of a population of 100,000.
Sedgwick County continues to be in the departments “substantial” rate, meaning it has 50 to 99 cases per 100,000 people. Seventeen Kansas counties are at low.
There were 1,943 new cases and 21 deaths reported from Feb. 22 to March 1, according to the KDHE.
A closer look at COVID-19 in Sedgwick County
Sedgwick County sits at a 7.7% positive COVID-19 test rate as of March 2.
This time last week, it was at 9.3%. The rate accounts for the 14-day average of recorded positives over the total number administered and does not include at-home tests and those not reported to the Sedgwick County Health Department.
There were 119 new COVID-19 positives reported in the last seven days. The highest number reported on a single day was 25 on Feb. 24. Last week, there were 137 new cases reported, with the highest being 29 on Feb. 21.
See Sedgwick County’s COVID-19 dashboard below, which updates every Friday with the newest data.
