(RILEY COUNTY, KS – October 23, 2020) Riley County has 27 new positive cases and 16 additional recoveries since the last report on Wednesday, October 21.
Ascension Via Christi Hospital in Manhattan has no positive patients at this time.
A new outbreak has been identified in Riley County and two have expired, bringing the active total to seven. A wedding that occurred in Riley County on October 17 has a total of 22 positive cases. RCHD contact tracing staff are calling all known close contacts in Riley County, but most guests were residents of other counties. The newlyweds have contacted all wedding guests to inform them of the outbreak.
Anyone who has symptoms, is a close contact of a positive patient, or would like information about how to get tested should contact their health care provider or call the Riley County Screening Line at 785-323-6400. The Screening Line is staffed by nurses and is available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
If you have had close contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19, you are required to quarantine for 14 days after the last time you were in close contact with that person. This requirement is in place even if you test negative for COVID-19 during the quarantine period.
“Close contacts cannot test out of quarantine,” said Local Health Officer Julie Gibbs “Even if you test negative at an early point during the 14-day period, you need to stay home and complete the quarantine. The virus typically develops between 6-10 days after exposure, but can take up to 14 days in some patients.”
For people living in the same household, only the person who had close contact with a positive patient is required to quarantine. You should stay away from the person in quarantine as much as possible, and avoid sharing sleeping quarters and bathrooms. If symptoms develop, seek medical attention and follow the recommendations of your doctor.
Quarantine is used to keep someone who might have been exposed to COVID-19 away from others. Quarantine helps prevent spread of disease that can occur before a person knows they are sick or if they are infected with the virus without feeling symptoms. People in quarantine should stay home, separate themselves from others, and monitor their health.
For more information about quarantine and isolation requirements, and the science behind those designations, visit the CDC COVID-19 website at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html or call the health department at 785-323-6400.
Riley County Statistics for Friday, October 23, 2020:
- Total positive cases in Riley County Residents: 2,111
- Total active: 82
- Total recovered: 2,018
- Total deaths: 11
- Total negative tests: 16,755
Case counts are preliminary and subject to verification.
A PDF of the outbreak data is available online at http://www.rileycountyks.gov/DocumentCenter/View/19578/10-23-age-breakdown
Patient data is compiled at the health department based on reports from local medical providers, labs, and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). RCHD staff continue to uncover errors in birthdate data from previous entries and are working to reconcile that data.
“I have spent a lot of time going back and contacting doctors’ offices to collect patient info to make sure every patient is accounted for and that birthdate information is entered correctly,” said RCHD Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Renee Lucas. “There are no longer any unreported ages. Some categories saw a decrease in patient totals because of the original birthdate entries contained errors. We will continue to do everything we can to provide the most accurate and up-to-date information.”
Percent positive information is updated each Monday and is also posted online in the Data & Info section of the Riley County Coronavirus web page.
Riley County GIS staff have reformatted the Riley County Coronavirus Data & Info site to make the information more accessible and easier to find. See the updated page at http://rileycountyks.gov/coronavirus.
The next video update will be Wednesday, October 28th at 4:15 p.m. on the Riley County Health Department’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Rileycountyhealthdepartment/.
For more information about Riley County’s response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,
visit the Riley County website at www.rileycountyks.gov/coronavirus, follow RCHD on Facebook at /Rileycountyhealthdepartment/ and Twitter @RileyCoHealth.