TOPEKA, Canada (WIBW) – Gov. Laura Kelly has announced the official phased deployment plan for Kansas State.
Gov. Laura Kelly says that between Monday, Jan. 4 and Wednesday, Jan. 6, the state reported 5,501 new cases of COVID-19 and 130 new deaths. He said this brings the total to Kansas to 236,818 positive cases of the virus, 7,113 hospitalizations related to the virus and 3,027 deaths caused by the virus.
According to Governor Kelly, the state also exceeded the goal of testing 1 million kansans by the end of 2020. He said the official count of tests performed on kansans from the beginning of the pandemic to the end of 2020 was 1,001 .000. To find a free trial site available, Governor Kelly said Kansans can visit gogettested.com/Kansas.
Gov. Kelly said there has been a gap between the vaccination tracker at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. He said his team is working closely with the CDC to close that gap. He said the KDHE uses KS WebIZ to track the progress of state vaccination. He said that since 4 pm on Wednesday, January 6, the state has administered 45,872 doses of the vaccine. He said residents can go to kansasvaccine.gov to find out more about the vaccine in the state.
According to Gov. Kelly, Kansas has received 17,550 doses of the Pfizer vaccine during the week of Jan. 4, he said the state also received the second dose of the initial 24,000 doses. He said the state received 16,900 doses during that week. He said Kansas is expected to receive 17,500 doses of the Pfizer vaccine during the week of Jan. 11 and 17,000 doses of the Modern vaccine.
According to Governor Kelly, his team has prepared its plan for official stages of deployment of COVID-19 vaccines for the state, which are as follows:
- Phase 1: Long-term care center residents, health workers, workers critical to the continuity of the response to COVID-19
- Phase 2: Residents 65 years of age or older, those working in licensed settings, such as correctional facilities and shelters for the homeless, and critical high-contact workers working with many contacts who may be exposed to the virus
- Phase 3: Residents 16 to 64 years of age with severe medical conditions that increase the risk of serious illness with COVID-19, non-health workers, and critical infrastructure employees who cannot work remotely
- Phase 4: Residents aged 16 to 64 with other medical conditions that increase the risk of serious illness with COVID-19
- Phase 5: All residents over the age of 16
Governor Kelly said Phase 1 is expected to end in late January.
According to Governor Kelly, the phased plan was created following the guidance of national and state health experts. He said the state will continue to make decisions based on what doctors, science and public health experts say. He said the time period for the rest of the vaccine deployment depends on when and how many doses the state receives from the federal government. He said it is important to note that while there will be more people meeting the requirements for the vaccine with each phase, there will also be more health care providers administering the vaccine with each phase.
Governor Kelly said his health greeting for the week of Jan. 4 goes to Leslie Pfannenstiel, the Norton County health administrator. He said the Pfannanstiel team consists of only seven members. He said Pfannenstiel also helps facilities experiencing outbreaks, as well as has provided social and financial services to quarantined residents.
January 7, 12:15 p.m.
Gov. Laura Kelly will update the state on her efforts against COVID-19.
Gov. Laura Kelly says she will hold a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 7 at 4 p.m., to update the state on her administration’s efforts against the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also expected to discuss priority vaccine groups.
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