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May 4, 2021Wichita, Kan. |  By: AP

Coronavirus variants surge, vaccines slow in Kansas


WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - Kansas health officials say vaccinations to protect the public from COVID-19 slowed in April, even as more contagious variants of the coronavirus surged and hospitalizations from the disease rose in the state.

The Wichita Eagle reports that Kansas Department of Health and Environment numbers show about 91,000 fewer people received first doses of the available vaccines in April than in March. 

Officials say there were 520 new hospitalizations and 157 new ICU admissions in April, compared with 438 new hospitalizations and 150 new ICU admissions in March.

Meanwhile, confirmed variant cases nearly tripled over the last three weeks of April. Officials did see a decrease in deaths from COVID-19 in April, at 69, compared with 170 deaths in March.