vaccines

Some rural Kansas counties are offering free flu vaccines targeting farm workers amid an ongoing nationwide bird flu outbreak among dairy cattle and poultry.

Researchers at the University of Missouri say they’ve created a new vaccine to protect cattle from bovine anaplasmosis. The disease is estimated to cost U.S. ranchers millions each year.

A summer COVID surge is starting to recede in Kansas and Missouri, but the next wave of infections is likely only weeks away. People covered by Medicare, Medicaid and most private insurance can get the updated vaccine for free or for a small fee.

Wastewater testing helps track COVID trends. Currently, COVID levels in wastewater are surging in Kansas and Missouri as well as in much of the U.S.

Since 2017, the percentage of Missouri's kindergarten-age children who have received the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine has dropped from 95% to around 90%, according to state health officials.

Wastewater tests are designed to provide an early warning system so that public health officials can ward off outbreaks.

In the Kansas City area, hospitals are already seeing a steady stream of cases associated with respiratory viruses, including COVID. If the trend of hospitalizations continues, the CDC warns that hospitals will be forced to ration care.

The CDC reports that only 16% of adults and 7% of children have received the updated COVID vaccine. Although hospitalizations are currently low in Kansas City, providers warn the virus can still be deadly.

During the pandemic, a mass exodus of employees left the medical field. Hospital leaders say they're finally starting to fill open positions with permanent workers instead of contract employees, but higher COVID cases have sent many medical workers home sick.

Residents can book appointments to get updated COVID booster shots at local CVS and Walgreens pharmacies. However, the city's health department says it could be weeks before vaccines are delivered to its clinics.

The FDA recently approved a safe and effective new coronavirus vaccine booster to protect against the latest variants, and it should be available around the Kansas City area soon. Residents can also get the booster at the same time as the latest flu shot, which experts say you should do before Halloween.

An updated COVID-19 vaccine will be in Kansas City in the next few weeks. The shot combats newer variants more effectively and comes as case numbers creep up across the metro.