Pettis County added 140 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the total number of cases to 8,400, according to the Pettis County Health Center.
There is a significant backlog in reporting cases from the holiday weekend, so these numbers probably do not reflect all of the cases.
“The (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services) website is reporting Pettis County has a positivity rate of 12.1% for the past seven days, which is an increase from 11.1% for the previous week with PCR testing,” the Pettis County COVID-19 Task Force briefing stated on Monday. “The locally calculated positivity rate for the week of Dec. 15 to 21 was 12.51%. The case count per 100,000 for this time period is 359/100,000. This week there were 743 PCR tests and 496 antigen tests for a total of 1,239. Last week there were 1426 tests.”
The case counts by age will be posted either later this week or next when the holiday backlog is corrected.
“Vaccine breakthrough rates for the week of Dec. 20-26 there were 34 out of 165 cases for a rate of 20.6% vaccinated and 79.4% not vaccinated,” the briefing stated. “May was the most common month of last vaccination. There were a total of seven cases had received boosters and four were partially vaccinated.”
Thus far this season there have been 74 Pettis County residents with reported cases of influenza. During the entire 2020-21 influenza season there were less than 10 reported cases. Fifty of those cases were reported in the last week.
As of Friday, there were 1,755 hospitalized in Missouri with COVID as compared to 1,914 hospitalized with COVID last week. There are 468 people in ICU and 242 on ventilators as compared to 481 people in ICU and 246 on ventilators last week.
There are 20 individuals hospitalized at Bothwell Regional Health Center as compared to 12 last week. There are two patients on a ventilator. Fifteen of the 20 patients were not vaccinated. All inpatients will be tested upon admission.
The DHSS website reports 110 deaths in Pettis County with a confirmed PCR test and 18 deaths with a positive antigen test. A report of the death of a Pettis County resident outside of Sedalia was received this week.
Finding a bed in a referral hospital is difficult due to a surge in cases and staffing shortages. This is not just for people with COVID, but for anyone needing specialized care.
Approximately 45.3% of the population of Pettis County residents have started vaccination. According to the state website, 19,180 Pettis County residents have started vaccination and 17,118 are considered fully vaccinated, which is approximately 40.4% of the population. Pettis County is falling behind the state rate of 60.5% who have started vaccination and 53.5% fully vaccinated. The state is reporting 71.6% of the population over 18 has started and 63.8% are fully vaccinated. For Pettis County, 56.8% of the population 18 and over have started vaccination (18,104) and 51% (16,263) are fully vaccinated. According to the DHSS website, 14.2% (1,073) of 5-17-year-olds have started vaccination and 11.3% (854) are fully vaccinated. For the 65 and over age group, 78.4% (5,680) have started vaccination and 71.5 % (5,178) are considered fully vaccinated.
The vaccine is available for everyone 5 years of age and older. Booster doses given six months after the last dose for Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or two months after the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are available for those 16 years and older through local pharmacies, Pettis County Health Center, Katy Trail Community Health and Bothwell Regional Health Center. All vaccines are free.
Pettis County Health Center provides vaccines for homebound individuals. Call 660-827-1130 to make arrangements.
Pettis County Health Center has regular walk-in clinics from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, from 8:30 to noon on Thursdays and from noon to 3 p.m. Fridays. The Health Center will close at 2 p.m. Dec. 31.
Preliminary data shows the currently authorized Moderna COVID-19 booster can boost neutralizing antibody levels 37-fold higher against the omicron variant than pre-booster levels. Similar data is being reported by Pfizer-BioNTech for its vaccine booster.
This week’s COVID-19 vaccine clinic for the two-dose primary series and booster doses is from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 29 (Pfizer) at Bothwell Healing Arts Center on the second floor. People may walk in; however, appointments are encouraged by calling 660-829-8888 or scheduling in Bothwell’s patient portal.
The Pfizer vaccine is available for children aged 5 to 11. People who want the vaccine for their child in that age group can make appointments at Bothwell TLC Pediatrics from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday by calling 660-829-5852 or 660-829-8888 or at Bothwell Health Center-Truman Lake in Warsaw from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays by calling 660-438-6800.
Low oxygen levels can be an early warning sign that medical care is needed. For most people, a normal oxygen level is 95% or higher. Severe COVID-19 illness is defined as individuals who have oxygen levels of less than 94%. A moderate illness is less than or equal to 94% and mild COVID-19 illness is anyone who has any of the various signs and symptoms of COVID-19, such as cough, sore throat, headache, and muscle pain, without shortness of breath, dyspnea or abnormal chest imaging. Those with a critical COVID-19 illness have respiratory failure, septic shock and/or multiple organ dysfunction.
Individuals can test themselves at home with the BinaxNOW COVID-19 Antigen Self-Test available for purchase (Walmart, Walgreens). The sooner a person knows they have the virus, the sooner they can start treatment and isolate to prevent the spread of the virus.
Monoclonal antibody infusion treatment is available for people who have tested positive for COVID-19 and who have had an onset of symptoms within the last 10 days. Monoclonal antibody infusion can help the body fight off COVID-19 and reduce the risk of severe illness or hospitalization. People meeting those conditions should call 660-829-8830 to be screened for potential treatment.
The infusion treatment is administered on the hospital’s third floor from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday by members of the Missouri Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT). There is no charge for this treatment when administered by DMAT.
All Bothwell clinics, except Bothwell walk-in clinic, will be closed on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. The walk-in clinic will be open from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 31 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jan. 1. The walk-in clinic’s holiday hours are subject to change due to staffing issues related to COVID-19. Call the clinic at 660-827-7900 before visiting.
COVID-19 testing is offered at the walk-in clinic. People must register for a testing appointment by calling 660-827-7900.
All clinics will resume regular hours on Jan. 3. The Emergency Department is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Katy Trail Community Health is offering free vaccines and free testing at its Sedalia site. The vaccine is also available at locations in Warsaw, Versailles, and Marshall. Vaccines are available on a walk-in basis at 821 Westwood Drive. For testing, go to www.katytrailcommunityhealth.org.
