The COVID-19 pandemic has left no stone unturned in spreading its tentacles across the state — and rural Phillips County is no exception. The northwest Kansas county, which straddles the Nebraska border, has had one of the higher rates of COVID-19 cases per capita in the state. As of now, that has not impacted Phillips County Retirement Center in Phillipsburg — Nate Glendening, the facility's administrator, said they have been able to avoid an outbreak and are looking to keep it that way. A surefire means of keeping the facility's 50 residents and 65 staff members safe is the COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected to begin rolling out to long-term care facilities across the state as early as next week.