County Executive Sam Page said Wednesday he hopes people will keep wearing masks while court proceedings continue, pointing to a recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that vaccinated adults wear masks, and similar mandates in communities across the country.
Vaccinations in the county have risen to 1,700 doses per day as of July 27 from 1,100 a day in early July, Schmidt said. Still, at the current pace, the county wont reach 50% vaccinated until late October, Schmidt said.
Statewide, 48% of residents have received at least one dose of the vaccine and 42% have been fully vaccinated, according to the Department of Health and Senior Services.
Missouri on Wednesday reported 4,488 confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases, and 22 deaths, bringing the total number of people killed by the virus to 9,777. The statewide weekly average of new COVID infections was 2,267, the highest rate since January.
St. Louis task force hospitals on Wednesday reported a daily average of 431 patients hospitalized with COVID over the past week, up from 420 on Tuesday and higher than any time since early February.
In southwest Missouri, the Springfield-Greene County Health Department director Katie Towns said 58 people died in July, the highest monthly total since January, and 27 people died in the past week.