Sedgwick County Health Director Adrienne Byrne updated the county commission Wednesday morning on coronavirus in the county.

Currently, there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus in Sedgwick County. Byrne said until there is, the health department would not be commenting on people in quarantine.

"There's a difference between people being tested and testing positive. So, to minimize that confusion, we'll just be reporting cases that are positive because those are the ones that will have an impact on our community," said Byrne.

In the case a local case is confirmed, most likely due to travel,

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"If it does begin to spread in Sedgwick County," said Byrne, "reports from other countries show that most people show mild to no symptoms and they will not need to be hospitalized - that's over 80%."

The health director said the risk for Kansas and Sedgwick County remains low. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reports only one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the state.

"There's an advantage to being in the middle of the country. So, we're not one of the first. So, the CDC has been able to learn a lot in a short period of time and modifying guidance and sending it to state health departments who send it to us," said Byrne.

KDHE is still the only lab in Kansas testing. However, both LabCorp and Quest have been approved and will start testing soon. Both have locations in Sedgwick County. Byrne said these tests could come from doctors or hospitals who want to test people who meet screening criteria for coronavirus.

She also reiterated much of the information that has been passed down from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

The county is working with pharmacies to make sure information is received by the most vulnerable populations: those 65 and older with pre-existing conditions like heart disease, lung disease, going through cancer treatment etc.; the same population most vulnerable for the flu.

"This is new, it's frightening, it has a lot of anxiety up in our community and all over our country, a lot of that anxiety is because it is new and we don't know what to do," said Byrne responding to people's actions to COVID-19.

The county is also working with long-term care facilities to review infection protocols, according to Byrne. She said the county will meet weekly with the emergency operations center to discuss infection control.

Byrne reaffirmed the CDC guidelines to prevent illness from spreading: handwashing, avoiding sick people, and don't touch your face (because the virus doesn't get in your body through your skin - but through your eyes/nose/mouth).

It's unknown how long the virus lasts on surfaces, but it can be killed with Clorox-based wipes.

"We do have a lot of control over the spread of illness. Just watch people. Just start watching our habits like we sneeze in our hands and then don't wash. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer," said Byrne. "We can make a difference, it's important for even young and healthy people to wash their hands thoroughly because we can then protect our most vulnerable populations."

Byrne said if you've come within six feet of someone with COVID 19 for at least 10 minutes, you are considered to have had close contact with that person.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include a fever over 100.4, cough and difficulty breathing. Some people even develop pneumonia. There is no treatment for coronavirus other than to treat the symptoms.