Confused About Coronavirus Re-openings? You Are Not Alone

As parts of the Kansas City metro begin to re-open, citizens are becoming less patient and area mayors worry that the varying approaches have created confusion that could lead to noncompliance and diminished trust in their ability to lead.  Adding to the confusion were the recent mass protests which were allowed to proceed even though they violated almost every previously established mandate.    

Missouri has a recovery plan, but implementation remains a serious challenge among city leaders

Confirmed Coronavirus cases were reported to be on the rise in Missouri, with triple-digit increases for three straight days in the Kansas City metropolitan areas, according to state health department data.

The number of new cases had been dropping since May 7, with a low of 135 on May 17, before the increase in positive test results resumed.  Missouri's top health official, Dr. Randall Williams, said improved testing capacity of up to 12,000 tests a day might account for the increase. 

Although some media outlets seemed to revel in the rise in cases, the actual numbers are not that alarming. The Kansas City metropolitan area, which includes two Kansas counties, reported 131 new cases Thursday. Kansas City had 71 of those cases, with 20 in Jackson County, 4 in Clay County and 2 in Platte County. A total of 36 new cases were recorded in nearby Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas.

Breaking down those numbers, the population of the area where the cases were reported is 1,825,201 according to 2019 data.  This calculates to new cases in the population of less than .0073%.

Since the data collection began, the state of Missouri has reported 13,767 cases.  Of those, 7,516 or 55% of the cases originated in St. Louis, St. Louis County and St. Charles County.  Missouri boasts a population of 6.137 million people which means less than .23% of the state population has been affected.  Of those, many were reported to be asymptomatic and recovered without any medical intervention.  The state has reported 786 deaths.

Adding to this concern was that there seems to be no standard by which some of the data is gathered and utilized.  In a recent conference, city leaders discussed whether these numbers would mean the metro would have to tighten restrictions, and what that would mean for public confidence and mental health. The conversation focused on whether the metro should adopt the same “gating” criteria, which are guidelines used to decide if a city or county is ready to move to the next step of reopening.

Gladstone Mayor Carol Suter said, “I mean, frankly, you look at these charts and you say, again, we look like chickens running around with our heads cut off."

Adding to the discussion was Blue Springs Mayor Carson Ross who said,  “I think there is a reality check for us elected officials. For those people that have not already lost confidence in our leadership, they're losing confidence in our leadership because we're not on the same page."

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas pushed back, saying what happens in one city in the metro affects the entire region so it makes sense to have the same metrics for phased re-openings.  

Citizens and business owners have become more and more frustrated as clarity regarding reopening is far less than clear.  Despite this, some business owners feel that if they speak up, they will be used as a pawn to make a point, as has happened in other highly publicized cases.

None of this makes any sense anymore, said one business owner. The jig is up, the lockdown is over, our elected officials just need to catch up. The protests have exposed the absurdity of the continued lockdowns. It’s either a public-health emergency and crowds must be stopped, or it’s not. It cannot be both.  

Yet another business owner, who asked not to be identified, stated that he has businesses in multiple locations and it literally takes three spread sheets to track all the different rules and dates for reopening his businesses. 

Governor Mike Parson allowed the state to reopen May 5, with restrictions such as 6-foot social distancing and limits on capacity for many businesses and organizations. The second phase of reopening, which had been scheduled to begin May 31, was pushed back to June 15 due to the resurgence in cases, however for some, that date has changed many times in every direction further blurring any clear sense of guidance.  As the 15th rapidly approaches, it becomes more and more clear that the only thing that is for certain is that everyone agrees that no one knows what will happen next.

KPGZ News - Jim Dickerson contributed to this report