masks

Kansas Governor Issues A New Statewide Mask Mandate, But Republicans Scoff And Quickly Overturn It

By • Apr 1, 2021
Stephen Koranda / Kansas News Service

Gov. Laura Kelly suffered a quick defeat in her latest effort to impose orders aimed at curbing the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sedgwick County Ends Mask Mandate Before New State Law Takes Effect

By • Mar 24, 2021
Nadya Faulx / KMUW/File photo

Sedgwick County has ended its mask mandate and other safety protocols intended to fight the spread of COVID-19.

A Pandemic, Exhaustion And Threats: Why Dozens Of Kansas Public Health Officials Are Quitting

By Jim McLean • Dec 1, 2020
Jim McLean / Kansas News Service

FREDONIA, Kansas — Nick Baldetti resigned as director of the Reno County Health Department in July.

He left to head an effort to establish a school of health at McPherson College. It was a good opportunity, Baldetti said, but he likely would have stayed to see the department through the pandemic if not for the 80-hour work weeks, the hostile political environment and the threats to his family.

Most Kansas Counties Rejected The Mask Order Before, But The Coronavirus Surge Changed That

By • Nov 25, 2020

At least 73 Kansas counties now require masks. The true number could be higher as the dust settles on a midnight deadline for each county to decide.

That’s a sharp increase since the summer, when all but 25 of the state’s 105 counties rejected Gov. Laura Kelly’s statewide mask rules.

Mask Rules Helped Kansas Counties Slow The March Of Coronavirus, New CDC Report Suggests

By & Celia Llopis-Jepsen • Nov 20, 2020

In Kansas counties that adopted mask rules last summer, the spread of COVID-19 slowed, new research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows.

The study by federal and state epidemiologists suggests that if more counties follow suit, it could help stem a disastrous groundswell that has hospitals in Kansas and across the Midwest reeling.

Wichita Agrees To Help Enforce Sedgwick County's Tighter COVID-19 Restrictions

By • Nov 19, 2020
Nadya Faul / KMUW/File photo

The city of Wichita said it will work with Sedgwick County to enforce the county’s new public health order.

The order passed last week tightens restrictions on certain businesses and mass gatherings, and it requires masks in most public spaces. It also lays out possible penalties for violations, the first time the county has adopted enforcement measures.

With Kansas Hospitals Reeling, Governor Makes Second Push To Tame Coronavirus With Masks

By • Nov 18, 2020
Fernando Salazar / Wichita Journalism Collaborative

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly is again pressing a statewide mask requirement to tame a coronavirus surge that has filled the state’s intensive care beds and left at least one major hospital caring for patients in hallways.

Wichita Mayor: City Will Enforce New County Health Order

By • Nov 12, 2020
Beth Golay / KMUW/File photo

Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple says the city will take action against businesses that openly defy a new county health order meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Kansas Exceeds 100K Coronavirus Cases As Mask Debate Rages

By • Nov 9, 2020
Kansas News Service

TOPEKA — Kansas on Monday reported another record seven-day spike in coronavirus cases, pushing the state past 100,000 for the pandemic as officials wrestled with getting more residents to wear masks.

City Council Extends Wichita Mask Requirement, But Sets 'Exit Ramp'

By • Sep 8, 2020
Kansas News Service

Wichita’s mask requirement has been extended only until Oct. 21 — though it could end sooner than that.

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