Health officials in Greene County have significantly lowered the region’s health capability score to 1 out of 10 on the local coronavirus Recovery Dashboard. Listen to the audio for the story here.
Clay Goddard, director of the Springfield-Greene County Health Department, said in a City Council Meeting June 23, that Springfield’s regional health capability score went down because of an increase in cases throughout Northwest Arkansas and Southwest Missouri, particularly in the counties making up the Joplin metro area.The counties where the outbreak is spreading fastest in southwest Missouri include Newston, Jasper, and McDonald Counties. These counties have a much smaller population than Greene County, but nearly five times the reported cases of COVID-19, according to Goddard. He said Joplin’s proximity makes this is a danger to the Springfield area.
“I do worry about the epicenter of this disease being an hour away, for obvious reasons,” he said.
Goddard also told the council he’s worried about smaller hospitals in this area becoming overwhelmed with cases, meaning sick patients will need to seek treatment in Springfield hospitals.
Councilmembers are considering whether to make it mandatory to wear a face mask in Springfield’s public, indoor spaces.
Here’s a link to the Springfield Health Department’s Recovery Dashboard.
Copyright 2021 KSMU. To see more, visit KSMU. 9(MDA3OTgyNDI4MDEzMTM0MjQzMTZlNDI0Mg004))
