photo by: Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health

Douglas County has added a coronavirus death that occurred earlier this year to its tally, and the county’s virus transmission levels remain in the highest level of severity, according to Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health’s latest update.

The health department’s latest data, released Tuesday afternoon, includes another death — a man between 55 and 64 years old. The health department said the death occurred in February, and that death information is updated periodically as the Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s Office of Vital Statistics reviews and validates death certificates.

The newly added death brings the total number of COVID deaths in Douglas County since the start of the pandemic to 138.

The latest 14-day moving average daily case count sits at 60.1, and the county currently has 1,174 active cases. Until either the average daily case count drops below 50 or the number of active cases drops below 1,000, Douglas County will remain in the high-severity tier of community transmission, according to the health department. There have been 26,942 COVID cases in total in the county since March of 2020.

Three people were hospitalized with COVID at LMH Health as of Tuesday.

The health department continues to recommend that Douglas County residents follow updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, and also encourages the public to get vaccinated. The Food and Drug Administration in late March approved a second booster dose for certain immunocompromised individuals and people age 50 and older who received an initial booster dose at least four months ago.

The health department administers vaccinations and booster doses at the clinic on the first floor of the Community Health Building, 200 Maine St., for adults and eligible children. Those interested in getting vaccinated can call (785) 843-0721 with any questions.