There are 2 new COVID-19 deaths in Saline County along with 167 new positive cases of the virus.

According to the Saline County Health Department, there have now been 2,786 total cases with 830 cases currently active. There are 1,925 people who have recovered, and  now a total of 31 deaths.

Salina Regional Health Center has 26 hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

The county dashboard has been updated with the latest information:

Mobile Device Users: https://arcg.is/yjPT1
Desktop Users: https://arcg.is/1qHnb0

The agency appreciates everyone who is following the guidelines for public gatherings, mask ordinances, and quarantine protocols. You are saving lives. They anticipate receiving more changes to these protocols from the Center for Disease Control and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment in the coming days. While it will take some time to implement these changes across our community, they will keep the public informed
about what to expect.

Health Department staff continue to be overwhelmed and several days behind with contacting new positive cases and close contacts. They have added staff and some cases being routed to contact tracers at DHE, but still are behind.

If you have tested positive or you are known to be a close contact, please do not call the Health Department unless at least three days have
passed and you have not heard from them. They understand that for both employees and employers, quarantine or isolation documentation may be necessary to verify a leave of absence. However, with being several days behind, they are unable to produce the necessary documentation immediately.

According to the Kansas Department of Health & Environment, there are now 168,295 cases and 1,786 deaths statewide. This information can be found at https://www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov/.

Following the proven public health guidance to slow the spread of COVID-19 continues to be extremely important for everyone to do. Please:

1. Wash your hands often, for at least 20 seconds with warm soapy water. Use hand sanitizer if you do not have access to soap and water.
2. Maintain physical distance between yourself and others of at least 6 feet or more.
3. Wear masks in public spaces as required by City Ordinance and County Resolution. You must cover your nose and mouth for masks to be effective.
4. By Public Health Order, gatherings are limited to 15 persons or less (with certain exceptions for establishments).
5. Sanitize frequently touched surfaces and areas such as doorknobs, handles, cell phones, tablets, etc.
6. Stay home if you are sick. Regardless if you think it may be a cold, it could be allergies, but it also could be something worse.

Saline County Health Officer Jason Tiller appeared on KSAL Radio Wednesday to discuss the surge of local cases.