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Majority Of Boone County's COVID-19 Cases Contracted Locally

Sebastian Martinez Valdivia
/
KBIA

As the number of COVID-19 cases in mid-Missouri is increasing, so too is the amount of community spread. As of Tuesday morning, locally contracted cases accounted for at least 33 of the 63 confirmed cases in Boone County.

The Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services department groups cases into four categories: travel-related, contact with a confirmed case, community transmission and unknown. Cases where the health department isn't able to verify exposure to a confirmed case, and the subject hasn't traveled are grouped under community transmission.

In response to the increasing local transmission of the virus, Boone, Cole, Randolph, Chariton, Phelps, Maries and Gasconade  counties have enacted stay-at-home orders. Governor Mike Parson has refused to issue a statewide stay-at-home order despite calls for one from local leaders and the Missouri State Medical Association. 

Dr. Christelle Ilboudo is the Medical Director of Infection Contol and Prevention at MU Healthcare. She says action to prevent the virus has to be consistent. “It really has to be contiguous counties or states entirely really doing it at the same time to really decrease the possibility of transmitting between those lines," Ilboudo said. 

Without social distancing, Ilboudo explains, a person who is infected could come into contact with 20 to 30 people in their circle of friends, family, work acquaintances and others. But Ilboudo also points out the data is incomplete. "We are not tracking all infected people, because we are only testing those that are really sick, high risk for being sick or being in the hospital," Ilboudo said. "That only represents a small fraction of actual infected patients- the numbers vary based on which country you look at."

Ilboudo said Missouri's cases have doubled roughly every two days, which is faster than the national rate, where cases are doubling every three days. 

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Sebastián Martínez Valdivia was a health reporter at KBIA and is documentary filmmaker who focuses on access to care in rural and immigrant communities. A native Spanish speaker and lifelong Missouri resident, Sebastián is interested in the often overlooked and under-covered world of immigrant life in the rural midwest. He has a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Missouri and a master's degree in documentary journalism at the same institution. Aside from public health, his other interests include conservation, climate change and ecology.