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COVID-19

Sen. Hawley of Missouri reveals $1,200 stimulus check plan

Republican Sen. Josh Hawley unveiled a plan last week for another round of stimulus checks for millions of Americans. The Missouri senator modeled the new legislation after March’s CARES Act. His plan would provide $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for couples… more

Coping with COVID: Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine arrives in Kansas City today, first doses delivered to TMC

The first doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Kansas City on Monday morning. Officials with Truman Medical Centers and University Health said the first shipment of vaccine arrived Monday morning, and officials are now in the process of… more

Parson signs off on $1.2B in added spending

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced Friday he has signed the more than $1.2 billion supplemental budget state lawmakers approved in special legislative session. Federal funds make up more than $1.17 billion of the almost $1.28 billion supplemental budget — with… more

FDA to potentially authorize Pfizer vaccine today

A panel of outside experts on Thursday recommended the issue an emergency use authorization to the Covid-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The 17-4 vote came after members of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee discussed… more

Coping with COVID: Potential Thanksgiving case jump may not be seen for another two weeks

In a University of Kansas Health System daily COVID-19 briefing on Thursday, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Steven Stites said that a potential Thanksgiving “surge” in cases may not be evident for another two weeks. As of Thursday. KU Health was… more

U.S. House passes federal funding extension

Congressional leaders moved on Wednesday to buy more time to strike an elusive deal on an economic relief measure to address the ruin wrought by the pandemic, but with time running short, it was unclear whether a compromise would pass.… more

Coping with COVID: New executive order requires COVID-19 testing in Kansas adult care facilities

Governor Laura Kelly held a press conference Wednesday to provide updates regarding COVID-19 in Kansas, joined by KDADS Secretary Laura Howard and KDHE Secretary Dr. Lee Norman. Kelly announced she has signed Executive Order #20-69, requiring COVID-19 testing in certain adult care… more

KU Hospital, metro seeing rapid depletion of ICU beds

During the University of Kansas Health System's daily coronavirus briefing Wednesday morning, Dr. Dana Hawkinson, the hospital's director of infection prevention and control, noted that of the hospital's 89 patients with an acute COVID-19 infection, 47 of them are in the… more

Coping with COVID: Final trials show AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safe with 70 percent efficacy

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine was 70 percent effective at preventing infection from the virus in more than 11,000 participants in late-stage international trials, according to results published Dec. 8 in The Lancet.  The vaccine was only about 60 percent effective among people… more

Kansas CARES Act program to deliver backlogged payments

The Kansas Department of Labor announced Friday development with the state's Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Program (PUA). Funded through the CARES Act,  the program pays unemployment insurance benefits to those who wouldn't typically qualify for it such as self-employed and gig… more