LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird and health officials briefed the community on Tuesday about the city’s efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
The Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department announced several significant changes to local targeted health measures;
- The requirement that companies may only have 75% occupancy and maintain a distance of 1.8 meters between clients and groups is now a guideline.
- The limit for attending youth activities and sports has been lifted. Those changes also apply to gatherings, youth activities and sports, eateries, bars, cosmetic establishments, body art facilities and massage therapy.
- Private businesses, such as offices or break rooms, with fully vaccinated individuals no longer need to wear a face cover. The mask mandate in public places is still in place.
The COVID-19 Risk Dial has gone down and is now at low to medium (yellow) risk.
The LLCHD announced that 51 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Lancaster County, bringing the community total to 30,544. The total number of deaths in the community remains at 232.
Variant cases: Two additional cases of COVID-19 variant have been confirmed in Lancaster County – one of which is B.1.1.7, also known as the UK variant. The other is B.1.351 also known as the South African variant. The variants have been identified through special testing at the Nebraska Public Health Lab, and LLCHD is currently investigating.
A total of 33 cases of COVID-19 variants have now been identified in Lancaster County:
B.1.427 / B.1.429 – California variants, 6 cases
B.1.1.7 – British variant, 25 cases
B.1.351 – South African variant, 2 cases
Variants can spread more easily and more quickly and can lead to more cases of COVID-19. Residents are urged to continue with preventive measures to control the spread of COVID-19 and its variants in the community, including getting the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it becomes available to you.
Recoveries: 27,503
Weekly positivity rate:
April 11 to 17: 6.2 percent
April 18 to 20: no data
Hospital admissions for COVID-19 positive patients: 44 with 28 from Lancaster County (one on a ventilator) and 16 from other communities (two on fans).
Risk indicator: low yellow, moderate risk of COVID-19 spread
Vaccinations administered:
Initiated vaccinations (first doses): 156,362
Completed vaccinations (second doses and J&J vaccine): 107,394
This week’s large-scale clinics (subject to change):
- Wednesday, April 21, Gateway Mall – first-dose drive-thru clinic in the garages of the former Sears store
- Friday, April 23, Pinnacle Bank Arena – first and second doses
- Saturday, April 24, Pinnacle Bank Arena – first doses
Registration: Residents 16 and older are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, and appointments are in place for this week. Residents can complete the quick and easy registration process and then schedule an appointment to get vaccinated at COVID19.lincoln.ne.gov. Residents who are already in the registration system are approached to schedule an appointment.
The health department works with higher education institutions and local high schools to register students 16 and older for vaccinations. Vaccinations are available at public clinics and pharmacies, and additional clinics are expected to be offered at local schools starting this week.
Those who do not have online access or need help with registration or planning can call LLCHD’s COVID-19 hotline at 402-441-8006 from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm during the week.
Testing: The process begins with a free online risk assessment available at BryanHealth.com, CHIHealth.com, or TestNebraska.com.
Drive-through tests are available at:
CHI Health St. Elizabeth: Autumn Ridge Family Medicine, 5000 North 26th St. and Southwest Family Health, 1240 Aries Drive. Call one of the locations to make an appointment: Autumn Ridge, 402-435-5300 and South West Family, 402-420-1300.
Test Nebraska: Gateway Mall, 6100 “O” St., north parking lot of former Sears store. The tests are conducted from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm and from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 402-207-9377
Testing is also available without an appointment at the three Bryan Urgent Care locations, 7501 S. 27th St., 5901 N. 27th St., and 4333 S. 86th St. Call 402-481-6343 to check waiting times.
For more information, visit COVID19.lincoln.ne.gov or call the health department hotline at 402-441-8006.
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