Reno County's COVID cases up; Kansas cases plummet 10.1%
Kansas reported far fewer coronavirus cases in the week ending Sunday, adding 6,731 new cases. That's down 10.1% from the previous week's tally of 7,490 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19.
Kansas ranked 23rd among the states where coronavirus was spreading the fastest on a per-person basis, a USA TODAY Network analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the latest week coronavirus cases in the United States decreased 14.2% from the week before, with 781,487 cases reported. With 0.88% of the country's population, Kansas had 0.86% of the country's cases in the last week. Across the country, 13 states had more cases in the latest week than they did in the week before.
Reno County reported 243 cases and zero deaths in the latest week. A week earlier, it had reported 149 cases and zero deaths. Throughout the pandemic it has reported 20,153 cases and 245 deaths.
Across Kansas, cases fell in 57 counties, with the best declines in Johnson County, with 1,106 cases from 1,309 a week earlier; in Shawnee County, with 467 cases from 644; and in Sedgwick County, with 1,267 cases from 1,393.
>> See how your community has fared with recent coronavirus cases
Within Kansas, the worst weekly outbreaks on a per-person basis were in Greeley County with 1,136 cases per 100,000 per week; Edwards County with 822; and Phillips County with 497. The Centers for Disease Control says high levels of community transmission begin at 100 cases per 100,000 per week.
Adding the most new cases overall were Sedgwick County, with 1,267 cases; Johnson County, with 1,106 cases; and Shawnee County, with 467. Weekly case counts rose in 42 counties from the previous week. The worst increases from the prior week's pace were in Reno, Jefferson and Pottawatomie counties.
In Kansas, minus one people were reported dead of COVID-19 in the week ending Sunday. In the week before that, five people were reported dead.
A total of 842,231 people in Kansas have tested positive for the coronavirus since the pandemic began, and 8,970 people have died from the disease, Johns Hopkins University data shows. In the United States 92,112,922 people have tested positive and 1,033,556 people have died.
>> Track coronavirus cases across the United States
Kansas's COVID-19 hospital admissions rising
USA TODAY analyzed federal hospital data as of Sunday, Aug. 7. Likely COVID patients admitted in the state:
- Last week: 786
- The week before that: 679
- Four weeks ago: 663
Likely COVID patients admitted in the nation:
- Last week: 72,801
- The week before that: 72,098
- Four weeks ago: 67,603
Hospitals in 24 states reported more COVID-19 patients than a week earlier, while hospitals in 24 states had more COVID-19 patients in intensive-care beds. Hospitals in 33 states admitted more COVID-19 patients in the latest week than a week prior, the USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Health and Human Services data shows.
The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from Johns Hopkins University and the Centers for Disease Control. If you have questions about the data or the story, contact Mike Stucka at mstucka@gannett.com.