At this point you probably don't need me to tell you that things aren't going well. Kansas hospital leaders are sounding that alarm almost daily. We have not matched last year's peak of COVID hospitalizations yet, but they keep climbing. With more patients suffering from flu and other illnesses this winter, hospitals are already filling fast. Meanwhile new COVID cases continue to climb rather steadily, suggesting no relief around the corner. Omicron, which is here but probably not in huge numbers yet, could make it all worse, unless we get more people vaccinated and boosted.
The Good: The infection reproduction rate, Rt, remained at 1.1. It's the best news we have this week, but still not great, because as long as that number's above 1.0 the overall number of active infections will continue to rise.
The Bad: Test positivity in Kansas rose from 47.3% to 48.3%, according to Johns Hopkins. That's second-worst in the country behind Wisconsin. Our testing numbers remain elevated from where they were a few weeks ago, but seem to have kind of leveled off.
The Ugly: Here's the hospital situation broken down in chunks:
- Statewide COVID hospitalizations are up from 668 to 758, according to the Kansas Hospital Association.
- Cases in ICU statewide fell from 201 to 199.
- Hospitalizations in the Wichita are went from 159 to 169, and cases in ICU there went from 57 to 59.
- Hospitalizations in the Kansas City area rose from 600 to 727, and cases in ICU there rose from 139 to 150.
- ICU availability in the KC area fell from 13.24% to 12.75%.
Bonus: Omicron will hit hard and fast. But the good news is, once we get through the surge, the decline should also be rapid. Breakthrough infections are a given with omicron, but booster shots can reduce them substantially and those that occur in fully vaccinated people are not likely to be serious, unless they're old or immunocompromised.
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