Coronavirus Coverage by Sarah Fentem

On March 15, teachers, government employees and other essential workers will join health care workers, first responders and people with high-risk health conditions as those able to receive the coronavirus vaccine. That means about 3.5 million people, or more than half of Missouri's population, will then be eligible to get the vaccine.

Scientists at the University of Missouri and their partners at the state health department have uncovered trace amounts of genetic material from the more contagious mutated virus in 15 of the 23 state watershed testing sites they have reviewed so far.

More coronavirus vaccination events are coming to St. Louis and Kansas City starting next week, Gov. Mike Parson said Thursday. A higher percentage of people are interested in receiving the vaccine in urban centers than in rural areas, Parson said. Because of that difference in demand, more mass vaccination events will be moved to the state’s two largest metropolitan areas.

One in 10 patients infected with the coronavirus will develop “long COVID,” a group of symptoms that persists for weeks or months after a person has recovered from the initial infection. Long COVID symptoms vary from patient to patient, but many describe feeling exhausted all the time — so much that daily jobs or errands become impossible to manage.

For weeks, Missouri data showed the state was vaccinating large numbers of multiracial residents against the coronavirus, suggesting that more than a third had received doses. However, on Wednesday, new information from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services revealed that the earlier data is likely inaccurate because it overcounts residents who identify as being of two or more races.

Two large-scale events at St. Louis Community College-Forest Park will inoculate approximately 6,000 people next Thursday and Friday. Other state-run vaccination events will take place through Saturday.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced Thursday that nearly 2 million Missourians will become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine by April 9, when every adult in the state qualifies. Parson said the first 900,000 will include homeless people, construction workers and those who work in higher education, all of whom become eligible for the vaccine on March 29.

The average daily number of new coronavirus cases in Missouri has dropped nearly 90% since peaking in November of last year. Doctors say that in part reflects efforts to ensure seniors and other vulnerable residents are receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

State and local health officials, the National Guard and volunteers gave nearly 3,500 residents the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine at St. Louis Community College-Forest Park on Thursday. The vaccine distribution was one of several state-run events being held in the region through the weekend.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will operate a large-scale vaccination site at the Dome at America’s Center starting April 7. Workers from FEMA, the Department of Defense and state and local health agencies will vaccinate up to 3,000 people each day for eight weeks.