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Kentucky child dies from flu
FRANKFORT — A child in Kentucky has died from influenza, state health officials said Friday, marking the latest in a series of concerning developments as respiratory illnesses surge across the state. The child had not received a flu vaccine this season, according to the Kentucky Department for Public Health. “Influenza is on the rise across
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Kentucky has ‘very high’ rate of respiratory illness
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS Kentucky is seeing a “very high” rate of respiratory illness, especially among children. “We are seeing somewhere between 10 to 20 patients each day in the children’s hospital needing admissions,” Dr. Lindsay Ragsdale, chief medical officer for Kentucky Children’s Hospital, said at an online press conference on Jan. 17. Statewide,
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Every household can get four free COVID-19 tests through the mail starting in late September
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS Starting in late September, the federal government will relaunch its at-home COVID-19 test program that makes every U.S. household eligible for four free COVID-19 tests to be sent directly to their home. The test, which can be ordered from COVIDTests.gov at the end of September, will detect the current
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Updated COVID-19 vaccines approved; recommended for everyone aged 6 months and older
BY MELISSA PATRICK KY HEALTH NEWS As the number of COVID-19 infections grows in Kentucky, two updated mRNA COVID-19 vaccinations have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that are designed to better protect against the most recent strains of the virus. “We are very excited to see the latest COVID boosters approved,”
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More tires cleaned up from Tug River
COVID on the rise again this summer It was another good day in the cool water with volunteers, Stream Sweepers – Central Appalachia Project and the WV DEP REAP. Like usual in the hot, dry summer months, the Tug Fork River has been flowing low, slow and clear. Despite being short-handed, workers were able to
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UK study estimates more than 134,000 cases of cancer went undiagnosed in the first 10 months of the pandemic
BY ELIZABETH CHAPIN UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY More than 134,000 cancer cases went undiagnosed in the U.S. during the first 10 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center study. The report, published in JAMA Oncology Feb. 22, provides the first estimates of missed cancer diagnoses in 2020 using
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Respiratory illness in Kentucky resurged in the week ended Feb. 10
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS After weeks of overall decline, three major respiratory illnesses increased in Kentucky during the week ended Feb. 10, with children between the ages of 5 and 17 getting hit hard by influenza. The Kentucky Department for Public Health’s weekly report says flu and COVID-19 activity is elevated and increasing
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As respiratory illnesses keep rising in Kentucky by double digits weekly, another one, with a long-lingering cough, is also circulating
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS As illness from the three respiratory viruses tracked by the state — influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) — continue to increase in Kentucky, another one with a lingering cough that can last for months is spreading over much of the country, including the Bluegrass State. “We have
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Emergency-room visits for respiratory illness went up for the sixth week in a row, as hospitalizations saw a slight dip
BY MELISSA PATRICK KENTUCKY HEALTH NEWS As we head into the full swing of the holiday season and people start to gather indoors to celebrate while taking fewer precautions to protect themselves, respiratory viruses such as influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID-19 are expected to surge. The state Department for Public Health’s weekly respiratory
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One-stop website on respiratory viruses launches in Kentucky
State joins CDC and other states in consolidated approach FRANKFORT (Oct. 12, 2023) — The Kentucky Department for Public Health has launched a new respiratory virus website, CoverYourCough.ky.gov, a one-stop spot for finding information on COVID-19, influenza and RSV. According to KDPH Commissioner Dr. Steven Stack, today’s move follows the approach the Centers for Disease
