(RILEY COUNTY, KS – December 21, 2020) Riley County has identified 71 new positive cases and 198 additional recoveries since the last report on Friday, December 18.
Ascension Via Christi Hospital in Manhattan is caring for 12 positive patients at this time. Two of these patients are on ventilators.
A total of 516 people participated in the Riley County Health Department’s free testing event on Thursday, December 17, and 512 people were tested by WellHealth on Friday and Saturday. At the Leonardville testing event held this morning, a total of 35 people were tested. Participants will be notified as results are received.
The first shipment of 200 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine arrived at the Riley County Health Department (RCHD) today. The limited number of vaccine doses received will be distributed using the Phase One guidelines provided by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) as follows:
- Riley County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) staff
- Riley County Health Department clinic staff who test patients and give vaccinations
- Urgent care staff
- Primary care medical staff
Vaccines will not be available to the general public at this time.
More information about the Kansas vaccination plan is available at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/284/COVID-19-Vaccine.
Riley County Statistics for Monday, December 21 2020:
- Total positive cases in Riley County Residents: 4,565
- Total active: 290
- Total recovered: 4,256
- Total deaths: 19
Case counts are preliminary and subject to verification.

The next written update will be published Wednesday, December 23. The next video update will be Wednesday, December 30 at 4:15 p.m. on the RCHD Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Rileycountyhealthdepartment/.
FAQ information about the COVID-19 vaccine is posted on the Riley County Coronavirus website at https://www.rileycountyks.gov/1873/Frequently-Asked-Questions
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.