A bi-partisan effort by Governor Laura Kelly, Senate President Ty Masterson, and Speaker of the House Ron Ryckman has formed an initiative to regularly communicate critical data to better inform regional and state leaders as they navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.
Every Tuesday, reports will be shared from the seven state regions as defined by the Kansas Healthcare Coalitions Map on the Department of Health and Environment’s website: www.Kdheks.gov/cphp/hcc.htm. The information, which will be presented by local health leaders, will inform state leadership about the immediate needs facing communities as they continue to respond to COVID-19.
A summary of the seven regional reports will be presented at State Finance Council each Wednesday.
“We encourage this additional opportunity for real-time information to be spread throughout the state and for regions to communicate in a way that helps move us forward in our COVID-19 response efforts,” Governor Kelly said. “This new reporting system will be another tool that my administration can use to keep Kansans healthy, protect small businesses, and keep our schools open.”
“Getting reliable and timely information out to individuals in communities and empowering local leaders is the bedrock to navigate the remainder of this pandemic,” Senate President Masterson said.
“I’m grateful to see groups stepping up to continue to share meaningful data through accessible channels to more Kansans. Thanks to the Kansas Hospital Association and many others for getting this going,” Speaker Ryckman said.
The calls will be data driven and accessible to the public to inform decision makers at all levels, including business leaders, elected officials, faith leaders and parents.
Wichita restauranteur and community leader, Jon Rolph, has been asked to chair the seven regional calls and provide a summary to the State Finance Council the next day. The project will be called Regional Report Outs and will be another tool in the broad pandemic response from the state. Jon thanks Republicans and Democrats for putting politics aside in this unprecedented time to save lives and navigate this pandemic.
“Healthcare is regional. When people need something, they want a solution closer to home,” Rolph said. “Knowing this information in real time can help everyone better understand what’s happening and even equip people to help when possible. We need people at all levels to be having these conversations and this process will simply make that easier.”
“The dashboard reports have been a critical tool. We believe that continuing to share information in new and relevant ways can better equip Kansans to understand the challenges our state faces and the solutions we can all bring to the table,” Chad Austin, President and CEO of Kansas Hospital Association, said.
To sign up and receive these discussions weekly, go to (https://covid.ks.gov/report-outs/).
All media inquiries for this effort can be directed to Sam Coleman: Sam.Coleman@ks.gov
Additional Information
- The discussions will be recorded and posted on the State’s COVID-19 Response website which anyone can access at any time.
- These discussions will be shared live via YouTube every Tuesday at (https://bit.ly/KansasReportOuts), beginning with the first region at 1pm.
- The discussions will be approximately 15-30 minutes and will provide data from each of the seven regions.
- Discussion participants will include regional public health officials, hospitals and healthcare providers, and other stakeholders.
- Schedule of Tuesday’s Calls:
o Kansas City Metro 1:00pm
o South Central 1:30pm
o Northeast 2:00pm
o North Central 2:30pm
o Northwest 3:30pm
o Southwest 4:00pm
o Southeast 4:30pm