Aug 07, 2020

KU Health director: Ryckman likely safe to end isolation for meeting with governor

Posted Aug 07, 2020 5:34 PM
Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, answers questions during a virtual media briefing Friday. (Screenshot by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)
Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, answers questions during a virtual media briefing Friday. (Screenshot by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)

By SHERMAN SMITH
Kansas Reflector

Dana Hawkinson, medical director of infection prevention and control at the University of Kansas Health System, says House Speaker Ron Ryckman was probably safe to attend a public meeting with the governor after recovering from COVID-19.

Ryckman’s decision to attend the July 29 meeting of the State Finance Council ignited a political firestorm Thursday following Ryckman’s disclosure that he tested positive for the coronavirus on July 13. Gov. Laura Kelly said Ryckman’s actions were reckless and dangerous, and the speaker accused her of fear mongering and public shaming.

Kelly tested negative for the virus Friday morning.

Health safety guidelines by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate it is safe to end isolation 10 days after the onset of symptoms and if the individual hasn’t had a fever in three days.

“The best data that we have would suggest that you probably are not infectious after about eight to 10 days after symptom onset,” Hawkinson said. â€śSo it is less likely that he is contagious based on the little amount of data that we do have about that and the ability to actually culture infectious virus.”

Ryckman said he met CDC and KDHE criteria before attending the meeting of the State Finance Council with the governor and other lawmakers. He first felt symptoms the evening after he took the COVID-19 test as a precaution. He spent a week in the hospital, then isolated at home, tested negative for the virus and received clearance from his doctor before showing up at the meeting.

The meeting was held at the Statehouse in the former courtroom for the Kansas Supreme Court, with ample area for attendees to distance themselves from one another. Everybody in attendance wore a mask, but Ryckman, Kelly and others removed their masks after they were seated.

Kelly was tested Friday morning in response to Ryckman acknowledging the illness. CDC guidelines, updated on July 20, say patients with “severe illness” may need to isolate for up to 20 days.

House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, who wore a mask in public for the first time at that meeting, said the governor “shamefully attacked” Ryckman for attending the meeting and owes the speaker an apology.

“The governor continuously lectures and scolds Kansans to follow medical advice but when Speaker Ron Ryckman did so, the governor used the opportunity for her own political gain,” Hawkins said. “Blatantly dishonest and self-serving actions like this are why Kansans have lost faith in governor Kelly’s ability to lead our state.”

Erin Sorrell, a member of the Center for Global Health Science and Security and assistant professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Georgetown University, said recovery time from COVID-19 can vary. Most experts recommend patients isolate until at least 10 days from the date of a positive test, she said, and until they have no symptoms or fever.

“People who have recovered should still wear a mask and practice social distancing since it is unclear how long immunity lasts,” Sorrell said.

Hawkinson said the governor and lawmakers should have kept their masks on during the meeting to follow the “gold standard” for safety, even if Ryckman met criteria for ending isolation.

“Does that mean that you can go out the fancy free and not adhere to public health guidance, such as not meeting in large groups, not social distancing, or physical distancing and not wearing mass? Absolutely not,” Hawkinson said. “We don’t know the full implications of having the infection once and possibly being reinfected.”

Sherman Smith has written award-winning news stories about the instability of the Kansas foster care system, misconduct by government officials, sexual abuse, technology, education, and the Legislature. He spent 16 years at the Topeka Capital-Journal, where he started on the copy desk, then oversaw digital operations, was the managing editor and reported from the Statehouse. A lifelong Kansan, he graduated from Emporia State University in 2004 as a Shepherd Scholar with a degree in English.