New York Times Reporter Mitchell Smith mentioned Douglas County and quoted Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health Director Dan Partridge as part of a Sunday New York Times article on COVID-19 in different communities across the country.
In places where masks are standard and people are adhering to social distancing — both recommended by public health experts — transmission may be slower.
In Douglas County, Kan., home to 122,000 people, only 82 cases of the coronavirus have been identified, an exceedingly low number for a place of its size.
The county, which includes the college town of Lawrence, kept in place restrictions on businesses even after statewide mandates were dropped. Residents have continued to wear masks and stay far apart, said Dan Partridge, the director of the local public health agency.