COVID-19

Another Five-Million-Plus File for Unemployment

Another 5.2 million people filed for unemployment last week, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, bringing the total over the last four weeks to about 22 million. For the week ended April 4, the number was revised up by… more

Smithfield Foods Closing Martin City Plant

Smithfield Foods is indefinitely closing its Martin City plant, which employs about 400 workers. The move follows the closure of a Sioux Falls, S.D. plant, which is considered one of the biggest COVID-19 hotspots in the United States, where hundreds… more

Trump Chooses Seaboard, YRC Execs for Recovery Group

President Donald Trump has named two Kansas City-area executives to what have been dubbed the Great American Economic Revival Industry Groups. Steven Bresky, the president and CEO of Merriam-based Seaboard Corp., was named to a group focused on agriculture. Meanwhile,… more

Q&A With … Daniel DeBehnke, Guidehouse

Daniel DeBehnke is a physician and partner at Guidehouse, a Washington-based consultancy firm that recently put out a report that one in four rural hospitals could close, with Kansas being one of the hardest-hit states. And COVID-19 could worsen the… more

UM System Facing $180M Budget Shortfall

The University of Missouri System is  expected a $180-million budget shortfall due to impacts from COVID-19, said Mun Choi, president of the system. "We have a challenging road ahead," he said, estimating that the country is facing a 13 percent… more

Stormont Vail Gives COVID-19 Update

Stormont Vail Health, based in Topeka, has released data on its COVID-19 care. As of yesterday, the hospital system has tested just under 1,500 patients year to date. There have been 86 positive tests out of those, and currently six… more

Retail Sales Plunge in March

Retail sales in the United States fell 8.7 percent in March from the prior month and were down 6.2 percent year over year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.  The plunge was due to impact from COVID-19. Clothing and accessories… more

KCI Airport to Get $43 Million in COVID Assistance

Airports are getting stimulus money through the federal government via CARES Act grants, and the Kansas City International Airport will be one of the recipients . KCI will receive just under $43.3 million in stimulus. Airports across the country will… more

KU Med Testing Hydroxychloroquine

The University of Kansas Medical Center will participate in a nationwide clinical trial to evaluate the effectiveness of the drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), a drug that is said to reduce the symptoms of COVID-19. The hospital's hope is to prevent COVID-19… more

Johnson County Makes COVID-19 Tracking Data Available by Zip Code

People can now track COVID-19 cases in Johnson County, Kan., by zip code.  The Johnson County dashboard shows a map with zip codes colored by the number of cases in the locale. As of April 15, there were 318 positive… more