As the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and LDCPH disease investigators monitor variants of concern of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, testing has identified three cases in the past month of the Delta variant. The variant spread widely in India and Britain, and U.S. public health officials have voiced concern about the contagious variant spreading in communities with low vaccination rates, including recently in southwestern Missouri.
Douglas County's Local Health Officers, Dr. Thomas Marcellino and Dr. Jennifer Schrimsher, offered this message to Douglas County residents who can help keep our numbers low and mitigate future spread of COVID-19:
- The current vaccines available in the United States have demonstrated to be effective at preventing hospitalization and death due to COVID-19. Early research on the vaccines' effectiveness against the Delta variant is encouraging. However, people may consider still using masks and distancing when in larger crowds and reviewing the guidelines we published in late May when the local public health order expired.
- Some communities in the region with lower rates of vaccination have seen a significant rise in cases recently due to the Delta variant.
- In Douglas County, we have one of the highest rates of vaccination in the state, but we still sit at 51% of eligible adults fully vaccinated and 58% with one dose, so the more people who come forward in the coming days and weeks to get vaccinated will continue to protect our community. Watch LDCHealth.org/70for70 for information about vaccination events in the community and incentives for those who have not yet been vaccinated.