It can be found on the County’s website at … Cases tied to meatpacking plants in the region fueled exponential spread in southwest Kansas counties early in the pandemic. Now the number tops 1,000 some days. Latest Sedgwick County Covid-19 order re-emphasizes masks, new limits on numbers for gatherings . Events and business occupancy are not capped at 15 people. Minns will … Children age five or younger are not required to wear a mask. Less than a week after the Sedgwick County Commission opted out of the governor's mask mandate, the counties health officer says they are now required. (Sedgwick County, Kan.) – Sedgwick County’s Local Health Officer Dr. Garold Minns has signed a new emergency public health order which will take effect Wednesday, September 9, 2020 at 12:01 a.m. Sedgwick County’s Local Health Officer Dr. Garold Minns signed a new emergency public health order on Tuesday, which will take effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday morning, August 22, 2020 and be in place until at least midnight Tuesday night, September 8, 2020. Dozens more counties in Kansas now require masks. “If this continues,” she said, “our state’s ability to care for patients, both with COVID and also those without, will be compromised.”. "Your right to decide if you wear a mask. A new health order for Sedgwick County limits them to 25 people starting Friday. After a week under a 10% positive test rate in the county, health officials say the masks are working but need to continue being used. The Kansas News Service is a collaboration of KCUR, Kansas Public Radio, KMUW and High Plains Public Radio focused on the health and well-being of Kansans, their communities and civic life. We continue to list a number of counties as "unclear" because of conflicting information. The order was set to expire September 8th. It includes a mass gathering limit of 25 people and mask wearing requirements. Minns will continue to review and monitor COVID-19 trends in the community and will consider lifting restrictions as trends move in a positive direction. People fought for those rights.". “Today we have 30 times that.”. Kansas News Service stories and photos may be republished by news media at no cost with proper attribution and a link to ksnewsservice.org, Published November 25, 2020 at 12:35 PM CST. Haskell health officials subsequently asked everybody who attended the meeting to monitor themselves for symptoms for 14 days. Businesses will be required to continue operating at 50 percent of the fire code occupancy and close to the public at 11 p.m. but may continue carryout and curbside services. Our community toolbox consists of mask wearing, social distancing, and good hand hygiene, as the best ways for the community to continue to slow the spread of COVID-19 and protect one another. KCUR serves the Kansas City region with essential news and information. This order will be effective once the current order expires. Sedgwick County Park Shelter Reservations, Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department, Metropolitan Building and Construction Department, Legal Disclaimer and Privacy Practices Regarding Medical Information, Notice of Privacy Practices Regarding Medical Information, Latest Order Changes Face Mask Definition. Sedgwick County’s top health official has issued a mandatory face mask order, the latest effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. They shuttle critically ill patients to cities in ground and air ambulances. That includes Dodge City in Ford County. It’s just one measure people should take to slow the march of COVID-19, scientists say. County Commissioner Rob Roberts said COVID-19 wasn’t as prevalent there last summer. The Kansas News Service drew from tallies gathered by the Kelly administration and Kansas Association of Counties, but they sometimes conflicted with each other and from what we could confirm independently. Kansas Counties COVID-19 Responses. Sedgwick County Health Officer, Dr. Garold Minns, signed a new public health order on Thursday extending the Sedgwick County mask mandate through October 21st. Masks will now be required in all indoor settings and outdoor public gatherings, even when people have enough room to keep apart from each other. In the last year, she has been diving into data reporting. She pushed the issue by re-issuing a mask order this month. Call your county health department or county commission if you have questions about mask orders in your area, how long they will be in effect, and which situations they cover. Violators could end up in court with a fine of up to $500. Fines of up to $500 are possible. It will take effect Wednesday, September 9 and will remain in place until at least midnight on Wedn You can get more on this story including a statement … Individuals in public gatherings are still required to wear a mask. The order signed by Ohio Department of Health Interim Director Lance Himes works in compliance with the statewide mandatory mask order that was issued by Ohio Gov. Dr. Garold Minns signed the new emergency public health order Thursday, according to a news release. Wichita will continue to follow Sedgwick County’s Emergency Public Health Order which requires residents to continue to use masks in all public places, including all City of Wichita facilities. Updated December 3, 2020 . Sedgwick County's top health official has extended the county's mask mandate until December 9. Please send updated information to Sherriene Jones-Sontag. At least six citations have been issued to date. Masks or other face coverings that have valves or vents that allow air to be exhaled do not fit with the definition of “mask or other face covering” under this order. Rural Kansas faces a grim situation in which finding hospital beds has become increasingly difficult. Residents are still required to wear masks or face coverings in public spaces. With that, the mask mandate and public health order currently in place in Sedgwick County likely will extend beyond next week’s expiration date. At the Kansas News Service she will also be producing more radio, a medium she’s been yearning to return to since graduating from Columbia University with a master’s in journalism. You can follow her on Twitter @celialj_LJ or email her at celia (at) kcur (dot) org. Other important steps include washing your hands thoroughly, using hand sanitizer and staying 6 feet away from people outside your household. The county is working with Wichita and other cities to enforce the order. Many other counties, however, do not have penalties for refusing to wear a mask. Previously reluctant local officials got a week to either go along with it — or once again buck her safety measures while COVID-19 cases overwhelm hospitals across the state. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, What Kamala Harris' Political First Means For Black Women In Kansas City, Lawrence Artist Burns Message Of Unity Into Kansas Field For Biden-Harris Inauguration, Missouri Sends National Guard Troops To D.C. For Inauguration, Increases Security At State Capitol, Seniors, Pregnant Women and Others In Missouri Are Now Eligible For Coronavirus Vaccines But Shots May Still Be Far Away, Kansas City Doctors Say Coronavirus 'Infection, Prevention and Control' Can Jump The State Line, So All Communities Should Be Masking, A Record 100 People Are Hospitalized With Coronavirus At The University Of Kansas Health System, Kansas Hospitals Seek Help From Nearby States, But The Whole Midwest Faces A COVID Surge. It includes a mass gathering limit of 25 people and mask wearing requirements. Nov 10, … Sedgwick County legal officials say the county received more than 400 reports of potential health order violations. We're saying, 'Wear masks. The situation now, he said, is “alarming.”, “At that time in July, we had 30 (cases),” Roberts said. Major hospitals have set up more beds as fast as possible, sometimes in hallways and waiting rooms. "We're not saying, 'Don't wear masks.' She brings in-depth experience covering schools and education policy in Kansas as well as news at the Statehouse. The Ford and Seward County commissions are among them. “There is not another disease,” physician David Wild said, “Not cancer, not heart disease, not anything … that takes up 20% of the beds in this hospital. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published those findings last week. © Copyright 2021 County health officer Garold Minns' mask order is effective through Dec. 9. That’s a sharp increase since the summer, when all but 25 of the state’s 105 counties rejected Gov. Minns’ order will be similar to the governor’s order that went into effect last Friday. While there is still a cap on attendance at entertainment venues of 2,000 people, these venues may submit a plan to Minns for approval of events that have more than 2,000 attendees. And we got a percentage of those, but it comes with the turf.”. Celia Llopis-Jepsen reports on consumer health and education for the Kansas News Service. According to the Associated Press, Sedgwick County commissioners voted 3-2 Thursday to strongly recommend that people follow Kelly’s order but not make it a mandate. ", People fought and died for those individual liberties" that measures to control COVID-19 are infringing on, fellow commissioner Mike Stieben said. The Coffey County Health Department announced it highly recommends people wear a mask or other face covering as described in the governor’s executive order, but are not making it … Below are links local officials’ decisions. Many voted before that deadline to come on board, but some tweaked or watered down the governor’s version. Masks will now be required in all indoor settings and outdoor … Sedgwick County commissioners have voted to opt out of an executive order issued by Kansas governor Laura Kelly in July requiring face masks in schools. WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - (Update Wednesday morning, Aug. 19, 2020): The Sedgwick County Commission voted, 3-2, Wednesday morning to affirm the public health order signed by … The situation is so bad, he said, that even 10 more COVID patients showing up would be difficult to handle. “Thank you to residents for wearing a mask and to business owners for encouraging others to wear masks while in public.”. Doctors at the KU Health System and elsewhere have begged the public to mask up for months. The Leavenworth County commission rejected mask requirements again. This order will be effective once the current order expires. On a typical day last summer, Kansas was dealing with a couple hundred COVID patients sick enough to need a hospital bed. Sedgwick County health officer extends mask order through December 9 - KAKE News This order will remain in place until at least midnight, Wednesday, October 21, 2020. The Sedgwick County Commission has overturned an order by Gov. This order will remain in place until at least midnight, Wednesday, October 21, 2020. Counties in Kansas determine how their communities will respond to COVID-19, such as whether face masks are required or limiting the size of gatherings. More than half of the 900 cases in Miami — on the southern outskirts of the Kansas City area — have been identified just since the start of October. Seventy-six Kansas counties don’t have intensive care units, if they have hospitals at all, according to data compiled by Kaiser Health News. The AP said Kelly told legislative leaders that a desire to reopen schools is a key reason for her executive order requiring Kansas residents to wear masks in public and their workplaces. The City of Wichita’s mask ordinance has expired and is no longer in effect. This story was changed after the Kansas News Service discovered discrepancies between the state's conclusions about county mask orders and what independent reporting could confirm. 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