TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has added two new states to the quarantine list: Louisiana and Colorado. Previously, just certain counties in Colorado were included. This is effective for persons returning today, March 27, and moving forward.
A comprehensive list of those Kansans needing to quarantine for 14 days includes those who have:
- Traveled to Louisiana or anywhere in Colorado on or after March 27.
- Traveled to a state with known widespread community transmission (California, Florida, New York and Washington state) on or after March 15.
- Traveled to Illinois or New Jersey on or after March 23.
- Visited Eagle, Summit, Pitkin and Gunnison counties in Colorado in the week of March 8 or after.
- Traveled on a cruise ship or river cruise on or after March 15.
- People who have previously been told by Public Health to quarantine because of their cruise ship travel should finish out their quarantine.
- Traveled internationally on or after March 15.
- People who have previously been told by Public Health to quarantine because of their international travel to China, South Korea, Japan, Italy and Iran should finish out their quarantine.
- Received notification from public health officials (state or local) that you are a close contact of a laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19. You should quarantine at home for 14 days since your last contact with the case. (A close contact is defined as someone who has been closer than 6 feet for more than 10 minutes while the patient is symptomatic.)
Important Note: These mandates do not apply to critical infrastructure sectors needed to continue operations during this pandemic. Public health, including hospitals, clinics, etc. need to have the staffing resources to continue serving Kansans. While KDHE strongly recommends these quarantine restrictions for everyone, we do recognize that medical care needs to continue and no healthcare facility should ever be to a point where it would need to close due to staff being quarantined. We ask facilities to ensure they have updated their Emergency Preparedness Plans and implement protocols to ensure that no employee comes to work symptomatic. Other examples of critical infrastructures include pharmaceutical and food supply, along with others defined by the Department of Homeland Security.
For more information, please visit the KDHE website at www.kdheks.gov/coronavirus. KDHE has a phone bank that is staffed Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 7 p.m. The phone number is 1-866-534-3463 (1-866-KDHEINF). KDHE also has an email address for general inquiries, COVID-19@ks.gov. Please note these contacts are for general questions and cannot provide you with medical evaluations. If you are feeling ill, please stay home and call your healthcare provider.