Kansas Sees Record Number of COVID Cases; Hospital Workers Sidelined
MISSION, Kan. (AP) — Kansas is reporting a record seven-day average for new confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases as one of the state’s largest hospitals struggles to treat an influx of patients. State health department data released Monday shows Kansas reported an average of 3,134 new COVID-19 cases a day for the seven days ending Monday. That’s 13% higher than the previous record of 2,767 cases per day for the seven days ending November 18, 2020. At the University of Kansas Hospital, Chief Medical Officer Steve Stites says more than 500 of more than 13,000 employees are sick or awaiting test results.
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COVID-19 Sidelines Hospital Workers as Patient Numbers Rise
MISSION, Kan. (AP) — One of Kansas’s largest hospitals is straining to treat an influx of COVID-19 patients even as the surging virus sidelines hundreds of doctors and nurses. Dr. Steve Stites, chief medical officer at University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kansas, says Monday that at the University of Kansas Hospital more than 500 employees out of a staff of more than 13,000 are sick or awaiting test results. The illnesses come as the hospital is treating 108 COVID-19 patients, up from 40 on December 1. He says vaccination would have prevented all but a handful of the COVID-19 patients from being hospitalized, freeing up beds for other patients.
Kansas Doctors Worry About Hospital Capacity as Virus Cases Surge
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Doctors are worried about hospital capacity in the Wichita area amid the latest surge in virus cases and the ongoing staff shortages. The high number of COVID-19 cases along with other patients who need hospital care is leading to long waits in emergency rooms across Kansas's largest city. Dr. Tom Moore, who oversees Wesley hospital's COVID-19 unit, said patients are waiting for days in emergency departments for a bed to open up in the hospital. Dr. Sam Antonios, Ascension Via Christi's chief clinical officer, said the surge is straining staff resources. Antonios said everyone should get vaccinated for COVID-19 and the flu to slow the spread of those viruses.
Kansas Doctors Urge Those Feeling Ill to Get Tested
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Doctors in Kansas have a simple message for those who are feeling ill: Get tested. COVID-19 cases are surging across the country, and Kansas is no exception. To make matters worse, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Kansas as among the five states and territories with the highest flu activity levels in the country. Getting tested for COVID-19 is proving challenging. Several testing sites in Kansas are reporting long lines, and at-home testing kits are sold out at many stores.
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Judge Blocks COVID Vaccine Mandate for Head Start Program
MONROE, La. (AP) — A Louisiana federal judge has ruled that President Joe Biden cannot require teachers in the Head Start early education program to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The decision hands a victory to 24 states that had sued the federal government. U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty wrote Saturday that the Biden administration unlawfully bypassed Congress when ordering that workers in Head Start programs be vaccinated by January 31. Head Start is a federally funded program that promotes education for children under the age of 6 who are from low-income families. It was not immediately clear whether the federal government would appeal the decision to the 5th Circuit in New Orleans.
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Kansas Reports 54% Increase in Drug Overdoses in First 6 Months of 2021
TOPEKA, Kan. (KPR) – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) reports a 54% increase in drug overdose deaths during the first six months of 2021. Preliminary results from the State Unintentional Drug Overdose Reporting System (SUDORS) show that at least 338 Kansas residents died of drug overdose between January 1, 2021 and June 30, 2021. The tally represents a 54% increase from the 220 drug overdose deaths identified in the same 6-month time frame in 2020. Provisional data represents the most current estimates and is subject to change.
Of the provisional 338 deaths, 149 involved fentanyl or fentanyl analogs, 149 involved methamphetamine and 40 involved other licit and illicit drugs, such as cocaine, benzodiazepines and prescription opioids. More than one drug can be involved in a fatal drug overdose, so these values are not mutually exclusive. Fentanyl continues to drive the uptick in fatal drug overdoses in Kansas. Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is often combined with other drugs, such as heroin and cocaine, or used as a standalone drug. Due to its potency, fentanyl-involved overdoses have a fast onset and may be difficult to reverse.
There are several resources available to prevent drug overdoses. Recovery from drug overdose and substance use disorder is possible. Those in need of help can call Kansas’s substance use disorder hotline at (866) 645-8216 or visit FindTreatment.gov to locate treatment services. Visit PreventOverdoseKS.org for resources and more information on Kansas efforts to prevent drug overdoses.
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Activists Seek Special Prosecutor in Teen's Custody Death
UNDATED (AP) – A coalition of community groups is demanding that a special prosecutor be appointed in the case of a Black youth who died following a physical altercation with staff at a Kansas juvenile center. In a Wichita rally and letter to local officials, community activists also called for the release of video and the names of the individuals involved in the September death of 17-year-old Cedric Lofton. It comes after an autopsy report released last week contradicted an earlier, preliminary finding that the teenager hadn’t suffered life-threatening injuries. The autopsy ruled the death a homicide.
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Three People Die in Separate New Year's Day Wrecks in Kansas
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — At least three people died in separate crashes along Kansas highways on New Year's Day. The crashes the Kansas Highway Patrol reported happened as a winter storm covered much of the state with snow and ice. Early Saturday, a 20-year-old Missouri man died after his car slammed into the back of a snowplow in Kansas City, Kansas. Then a 62-year-old Wichita woman died and three others were hurt when a GMC Suburban went into a ditch along Interstate 135 Saturday afternoon in McPherson County. Saturday evening, a 48-year-old Osage City woman died after she lost control of her GMC Yukon on U.S. Highway 56 in Osage County.
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Person Killed after Hitting KDOT Snow Plow
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP/KPR) — The Kansas Highway Patrol says a person has died after a vehicle rear-ended a snow plow in Wyandotte County. The crash happened early Saturday on Interstate 435 near Leavenworth Road in Kansas City, Kansas. The patrol says the vehicle was traveling at highway speeds or greater when it hit the Kansas Department of Transportation plow truck. The truck had its warning lights activated. Further information was not immediately available. In a separate accident, a Florida driver was injured when their vehicle struck a snowplow Saturday. The Kansas Highway Patrol reports that the accident occurred on Interstate 135 near the Saline-McPherson county line.
Passenger Dies after Car Hits KCK House
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Police say a person died when a car crashed into a home in Kansas City, Kansas. The crash happened about 12:15 am Saturday. A passenger in the car was thrown from the vehicle and died at the scene. Police say a preliminary investigation found the car was speeding on State Avenue when the driver lost control and went off the road into the house. The driver was taken to a hospital in serious condition.
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Police ID Kansas City Man Killed in Hit-and-Run Crash
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Police have released the name of a pedestrian who was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Kansas City, Missouri, last week. Police say 60-year-old Jeffrey Moore of Kansas City died after he was struck by a car around 6:30 pm Wednesday in the 10500 block of East 42nd Street in eastern Kansas City. The Kansas City Star reports that police continue searching for a Nissan Sentra that may have damage to the front driver’s side, based on evidence left at the scene.
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Trump Endorses GOP's Derek Schmidt for Kansas Governor
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has given presumed Republican nominee Derek Schmidt what Trump called his "Complete and Total Endorsement" in the Kansas governor's race. Today's (MON) endorsement came in a statement through Trump's Save America political action committee tweeted by the PAC's spokesperson. Schmidt is a three-term state attorney general, and he faces no major opposition in the August primary election. Schmidt brought Kansas into an unsuccessful lawsuit after the 2020 presidential election seeking to overturn the results in battleground states as Trump and other Republicans spread claims of voter fraud. Schmidt also has joined other Republican state attorneys general in challenging Democratic President Joe Biden's policies.
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Fatal New Year's Eve Shooting Reported in Kansas City
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas City police are investigating a New Year’s Eve shooting that left one woman dead. Police said the shooting was reported just after 9:45 pm Friday in the 7600 block of East 50th Street. When officers arrived, they found the woman with gunshot wounds. Paramedics rushed her to a hospital where she later died. The victim’s name wasn’t immediately released and police did not announce any arrests.
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Four People Wounded by Stray New Year's Gunfire in St. Louis
ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis police received 736 reports of gunshots across the city as people celebrated the New Year and at least four people were wounded by stray bullets. The number of shootings reported between 5 pm Friday and 2 am Saturday increased this year over previous years. Last year, police received 542 such reports between 6 pm New Year’s Eve and am New Year’s Day. In 2019, there were 544 calls for shots fired during the same period. Police said a 14-year-old girl, 39-year-old man, 15-year-old girl and a 41-year-old man were injured by gunfire in three separate incidents across the city.
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Fort Scott Man Charged with Killing His Mother and One Other
FORT SCOTT, Kan. (AP) — A 23-year-old Fort Scott man has been charged with killing his mother and another man. The Bourbon County Prosecutor's office charged Dawson Mitchell last week with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 48-year-old Melissa Mitchell and 53-year-old Leonard Zimmerman. Their bodies were found at their home on December 21. Dawson Mitchell was arrested the next day. Authorities have not said what prompted the shootings. Mitchell was also charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon, an aggravated weapons charge and two theft counts.
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December Report: Midwest Economy, Confidence Improve
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The final 2021 report on a monthly survey of business leaders in nine Midwest and Plains states shows the region's economy continues to improve going into the new year, with confidence in the economy over the next six months soaring. The overall index for December of the Creighton University Mid-America Business Conditions released Monday grew to 64.6 from November's 60.2. Any score above 50 on the survey's indexes suggests growth. The survey's business confidence index, which looks ahead six months, rocketed from a weak 46.2 in November to 64.0 in December. The monthly survey covers Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
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Amtrak to Reduce KC-St. Louis Service to Single Daily Round Trip
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Amtrak service across Missouri will be reduced to one daily round trip starting Monday. The change comes after state and federal COVID relief money that helped fund two round trips ran out in December. Missouri's budget does not include enough funds for two Missouri River Runner round trips across the state. Patrick McKenna, director of the state transportation department, said the service would lose an estimated $2.5 million if two trains ran from January to June. Starting Monday, one Amtrak train will leave Kansas City in the morning and one will leave St. Louis in the afternoon.
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Black Hills Energy Customers in Kansas to See Rates Decline
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — About 117,000 Kansas customers of Black Hills Energy will sees their overall rates for natural gas service decline under an agreement approved by the state agency that regulates utilities. The decrease will occur even though the order from the Kansas Corporation Commission signing off on the agreement allows Black Hills to increase its monthly customer service charge by $1.56 a month from $16.94 to $18.50. The agreement requires the company to give its Kansas customers credits against their bills worth about $3 million each year for the next three years. The credits reflect that the company will pay less in taxes because of changes from federal coronavirus relief measures.
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Bengals Rally Past Chiefs 34-31, Clinch AFC North Title
CINCINNATI (AP) — Evan McPherson kicked a 20-yard field goal as time ran out, and the Cincinnati Bengals earned their first AFC North title and postseason appearance in six years with a wild 34-31 win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Rookie Ja'Marr Chase had a franchise-record and NFL rookie record 266 yards receiving and three touchdowns on 11 catches for Cincinnati. Joe Burrow threw for 466 yards and four scores while outdueling Patrick Mahomes, and the Bengals rallied from three 14-point deficits against the AFC West champs. Kansas City's eight-game winning streak was snapped and it fell behind Tennessee for the top seed in the AFC.
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Thompson to Lead Kansas State Against LSU in Texas Bowl
HOUSTON (AP) — Quarterback Skylar Thompson will return from an ankle injury to start for Kansas State in the Texas Bowl on Tuesday night. LSU interim coach Brad Davis won’t say who will start at QB for the Tigers. Myles Brennan is injured and Max Johnson transferred to Texas A&M. Freshman Garrett Nussmeier was listed first on a depth chart released this week but it’s unclear if he’ll play because one more game would burn his redshirt year.
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These area headlines are curated by KPR news staffers, including J. Schafer, Laura Lorson, Kaye McIntyre, and Tom Parkinson. Our headlines are generally posted by 10 am weekdays, 11 am weekends. This news summary is made possible by KPR listener-members. Become one today!