News – Page 1787 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Rural hospitals in Kansas prepared for COVID-19

info2020-04-17T08:59:32-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Rural hospitals in the University of Kansas Medical System have a unexpected boost in the fight against coronavirus: they are behind the curve. Heather Harris, Medical Director for Hays Medical Center explains that, “we have the advantage of being on the back end of this wave of the virus, so we can see that there has been shortages of needing for preparation.” Great Bend resident Dawn Johnson has seen this advantage first-hand. Three weeks ago, she went into the hospital for an x-ray after taking a cruise. Johnson says, “they were really, really prepared. They had me wear a mask and be so far [...]

Sedgwick County health officials urge people with COVID-19 symptoms to get tested

info2020-04-17T08:58:43-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Sedgwick County health officials said since the guidelines for testing relaxed, the number of people being tested has doubled. As many people are possible are being tested at the county’s central drive-thru coronavirus location. With the help of a local university, the county has also caught up some on the number of swabs needed for testing kits. (Read more: KSN-TV)

Here’s how the city of Wichita is helping the homeless during the COVID-19 crisis

info2020-04-17T08:58:22-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Last week, at least two homeless individuals in Wichita were showing signs of COVID-19. Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple said as of Thursday, they’ve not received any indication that those two people tested positive. As a city response, the two individuals were put into motel rooms so they could isolate and get the care they needed. Sedgwick County has now had more than 200 reported cases of COVID-19. "Even though it seems the hardest, we need people to really buckle down and focus on the stay-in orders, if we're going to protect not just ourselves but also our neighbors," said Whipple. (Read more: KAKE [...]

City of Wichita works to provide shelter for homeless community during the COVID-19 pandemic

info2020-04-17T08:57:55-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Shelters like the union rescue mission and human kind ministries are working to assure the safety of Wichita’s homeless community. Today we spoke with city leaders to see what they are doing to to protect homeless families during the pandemic. During his press conference today Mayor Whipple mentioned the city is working to fund a 300,000 dollar motel voucher through the United Way of the Plains to keep those homeless men and women who present COVID-19 symptoms off the streets and in a safe place to self-isolate. The plan is to temporarily house symptomatic patients while they await test results or [...]

Crawford County approves wind farm project

info2020-04-17T08:57:34-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Crawford County Commissioners approve plans for a wind farm project that will help protect the pockets of tax payers. The Jayhawk Wind Farm Project is 50 wind turbines between Crawford and Bourbon Counties, with about 20 turbines in Crawford County. Commissioners approved a few agreements between the county and Apex Clean Energy. The county will now get about $100,000 a year from the project for the general fund. Also, they made sure the company pays for any road work while transporting materials. (Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)

“Emporia Strong” helping community and small businesses

info2020-04-17T08:56:59-05:00April 17th, 2020|

“Emporia Strong” is a brand new organization focused on helping out local businesses and the community throughout the coronavirus pandemic. “When this pandemic started one of my initial concerns was food and insecure kids since they rely on the schools to get their food intake for the day, so I thought what can I do to help,” said Jamie Darcy, a graphic designer at IM Design in Emporia. “We know that these situations have only worsened and these rates have gone much, much higher with people losing hours and losing jobs,” said Jasmine Linabary, who is the Director of the EAT [...]

Gov. Kelly preparing how state will reopen when coronavirus subsides

info2020-04-17T08:56:36-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Governor Kelly extended the state’s stay at home order until May 3. Now she’s preparing how the state will eventually reopen. Kelly said the state could hit its peak number of coronavirus cases between April 19 and 29. It would need to see a reduction in cases for 14 days before social gathering restrictions could be relaxed. The governor’s administration will begin talking with business leaders, economists, and health experts on just how to reopen the economy safely and effectively. (Read more: KSNT News)

Spirit AeroSystems to power Wichita aircraft factory with Kingman wind farm electricity

info2020-04-17T08:55:32-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Spirit AeroSystems will be switching to electricity generated by a Kansas wind farm to power its aircraft factory in Wichita. Spirit officials announced in a news release on Thursday that public utility regulators had “cleared a path” for the company to convert to renewable energy at its massive 12.8 million square-foot manufacturing facility this year. The Kansas Corporation Commission approved a 10-year agreement between Spirit and Evergy under which Spirit will buy wind-generated electricity. (Read more: Local News |)

Diverging from KCMO, Johnson County decides against extending stay-at-home order to May 15 — at least for now

info2020-04-17T08:55:11-05:00April 17th, 2020|

Johnson County officials essentially decided not to decide Thursday whether to continue the stay-at-home order until May 15, as Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has done. Instead, Johnson County will stick with the business closure and distancing rules until May 3 before deciding if a longer extension is necessary. The May 3 date coincides with Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly’s order. Commission Chairman Ed Eilert told commissioners meeting Thursday that he and Kansas City, Kan. Mayor David Alvey decided to diverge from the Kansas City, Mo. branch of the CORE 4, noting that the extension from the county’s previous April 23 end [...]

JoCo cities face difficult decisions as they work to close budget gaps caused by COVID-19

info2020-04-17T08:54:40-05:00April 17th, 2020|

As businesses close in response to the coronavirus pandemic economic impacts are beginning to ripple beyond their shuttered front doors and windows. Sales tax typically generates between 20 to 50 percent of revenue for cities in Johnson County, financing general funds, stormwater projects and public safety efforts. But with the stay-at-home orders in place, this typically reliable revenue source is thrown into question, and municipal budgets, most of which were planned half a year in advance, are being restructured. To offset funding gaps Johnson County cities have largely been working towards cutting operational expenditures and capital improvement budgets, and some have [...]