photo by: Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health

Dec. 14 COVID-19 update from the health department.

One more Douglas County resident has died from COVID-19, according to the local health department’s update on Monday.

The new death, which brings the total to 30, was a woman in the 85-plus age range who had been hospitalized at the time of death, health department spokesperson George Diepenbrock said.

Previously, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health announced that 29 people — one resident between the ages of 45 and 54, eight residents between the ages of 65 and 74, seven residents between the ages of 75 and 84 and 13 residents age 85 or older — had died from COVID-19 or with the virus as a contributing factor in their deaths.

Douglas County reported 5,562 cases of COVID-19 as of Monday, an increase of 50 cases since Friday.

In Douglas County, 4,595 out of the 5,562 cases are inactive or beyond the infectious period, according to Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health, meaning 967 cases are active.

The county has averaged about 48 new cases per day over the last 14 days, according to a 14-day moving average graph updated weekdays by the health department. The current average of 48.14 new cases per day is down from a recent high of 74 cases per day in mid-November and up from a recent low of 17 cases per day in mid-October.

Twenty-three patients at Lawrence’s hospital had COVID-19 on Monday, one fewer than Friday. Of those 23 inpatients, 17 have active COVID-19 cases and six are recovering.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s online map noted that 45,126 Douglas County residents had been tested for the disease so far. The county’s testing rate per 1,000 people was 369.1.