By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Ellis County will follow the guidelines outlined by Gov. Laura Kelly for reopening the state in phases from the COVID-19 stay-at-home order.
Jason Kennedy, Ellis County Health Services director, said in a video conference hosted by the Hays Chamber of Commerce on Friday the county would not impose any more stringent guidelines than what had been outlined in the state order.
The state stay-at-home order ends Sunday night, which would allow most businesses to reopen Monday if they maintain social distancing and other CDC recommendations.
Restaurants can reopen, but customers have to be 6 feet apart and no more than 10 non-cohabitating adults can be seated at one table, Kennedy said.
"I fully understand that I am not the best one to run your business. You are," Kennedy said. "You have industry standards. You have a vested interest in protecting yourself, but also your customers and your employees.
"You are the best person to run your business. You are the best person to determine how to keep individuals safe while they are in your business. We will follow the governor's executive order, but you will run your business."
Kennedy said questions could be emailed to [email protected]. A link to the governor's reopening plan can be found on the Health page of the Ellis County website.
The plan specifically excludes certain businesses from reopening at this time. See the chart below.
Bars are allowed to continue curbside pickup.
"The goal of this order is to maintain 6-foot distancing," Kennedy said. "That is really the best thing we can do to protect ourselves at this time."
Limiting groups to no more than 10 people and maintaining people six feet apart is important, especially in entryways and lobbies of businesses, Kennedy said.
"Everything we do has an eye toward safety, but also has an eye toward maintaining the societal structure and business structures that were in place prior to COVID-19," Kennedy said.
When local government offices will resume normal operations is unclear.
Mayor Shaun Musil said via chat the city offices would not be reopening next week.
Ellis County Commissioner Dustin Roths said via chat he thought county offices would open Tuesday.
Kennedy said more details on local government operations would likely be released after local governing bodies meet next week.
The state is encouraging non-essential workers to continue to work from home when possible.
There are no travel restrictions within the state of Kansas, and Kennedy said Ellis County would not impose any travel restrictions. However, the governor's order recommends to delay any non-essential travel at this time.
The state is recommending voluntary quarantine if you travel to certain other states that remain hotspots for the virus.
Kennedy said he did not have a total number of people who have been tested in the county.
Ellis County has reported only eight cases of COVID-19. All of those patients have recovered. Kennedy said the county has tests available, but KDHE is only recommending testing patients who have symptoms of the virus.
The county has requested an additional 2,800 test kits.
Kennedy acknowledged during the call many questions remain and he could provide only limited answers at this time.
"My goal from a public health standpoint is to not only protect the health and safety and wellness of all of Ellis County, but that goes further than COVID," Kennedy said. ...
"We need to protect the mental health and physical health and do everything we can to protect and serve the residents and visitors of Ellis County."