Following is the Saline County COVID-19 update for Wednesday.
●19 people are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19.
●64 new cases of COVID-19 since Monday.
●165 variants were identified in the 289 samples sent from Saline County to KDHE for sequencing.
Salina Regional Health Center reports they currently have 19 patients who require hospitalization for COVID-19.
There have been 64 new COVID-19 cases identified since our last update on Monday making 82 cases in the last five days. The Saline County Health Department staff is actively monitoring 530 cases of COVID-19. There has been a total of 7056 confirmed cases, and at least 6399 people have recovered from COVID-19.
KDHE has identified variants in 162 of the 289 specimens sent from Saline County for sequencing.
An additional 430 people have been vaccinated in Saline County this week. This brings the total number of vaccinated people to 23,802 or 43.9 percent of the population- an increase of .8 percent over last week.
Due to the overwhelming number of new cases and hospitalizations, vaccination/ re-infection rates are not available at this time. The Saline County Health Department and Salina Regional Health Center thank you for your patience and understanding.
More data and additional information can be found on the Saline County Coronavirus webpage, KDHE COVID-19 Information Site, and CDC COVID-19 Tracker.
The best way to stop the spread of COVID-19 and thus prevent mutation of the virus is:
●Stay home if you are sick.
●Get tested if you feel unwell, even if you don’t believe it is COVID.You can find testing centers at gogettested.com or contact your local medical provider.
●Get vaccinated.You can find a vaccine at vaccines.gov or contact your local medical provider.
●Wear a mask, especially if you are not fully vaccinated. If you are fully vaccinated, wear a mask when in-doors in crowded spaces.
●Maintain at least6 feet of distancebetween yourself and those with whom you do not live.
●Do not travel to “hot spots."
●If you test positive, isolate immediately and be open and honest with COVID caseworkers about your contacts.