Coronavirus Coverage by Sarah Fentem

Health officials say people in the St. Louis region should expect to live with the threat of the coronavirus. To help, the St. Louis and St. Louis County health departments have released “Living With COVID-19," a plan for people, businesses and government agencies.

St. Louis County is on track to see 3,000 patients this year for mental health treatment, up from 2,300 last year. County Executive Sam Page wants to use federal coronavirus relief money and funds from a large settlement to help the demand.

St. Louis is seeing rising numbers of coronavirus cases, and the city’s health director is again considering recommending public health measures, including mask requirements, to protect people from the virus.

Earlier this month, federal officials recommended the COVID-19 vaccine for that age group after the Food and Drug Administration determined it was safe and effective. Doses of the vaccine, scaled down in size for smaller children, began arriving in St. Louis late last week.

As fewer people are getting tested for the coronavirus in offices, labs and pharmacies, sewer shed surveillance has become one of the most accurate ways to show the virus still exists in the community. The state and its partners at the University of Missouri are monitoring 112 sites to see if viral particles are increasing and if new variants are emerging in the region's wastewater.

Washington University scientists are conducting a clinical trial of a new version of the original Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Researchers say it will likely be better suited to newer BA.4 and BA.5 variants of the virus that have become dominant this summer.

An updated COVID-19 vaccine booster shot is hitting shelves in the St. Louis region this week after the federal government approved the shots for emergency use. Area health officials and doctors say everyone who can should get the updated booster, even if they’ve received the vaccine or previous boosters in the past.

Flu and other respiratory illnesses are on the rise in St. Louis. The increase in patients is coming as more health care employees leave their jobs, putting more strain on the remaining workforce.

Researchers from the University of Missouri and Washington University, studying St. Louis Children’s Hospital emergency room data, found more children are coming to the ER with gun shot injuries than before the coronavirus pandemic began in early 2020.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government prevented states from kicking people off MO HealthNet, Missouri's Medicaid health insurance program. That provision ends April 1, and state residents will once more need to prove their eligibility for the low-cost coverage.