Starting this week, the Great Bend Tribune has taken steps to make local stories about the novel coronavirus and Covid-19 accessible to the public online at no cost.

The Great Bend Tribune posts its news stories on its website, gbtribune.com. Print and digital subscribers have unlimited access to the stories, while people who don’t have a subscription can view up to three stories a month at no charge. However, as of this week, all stories marked “Community Covid-19” can be viewed without restrictions.

The Tribune is a business relying on subscriptions and advertising to pay the bills but also has a role to play in providing reliable information to the public, Publisher Mary Hoisington said. The decision to move these stories from “behind the pay wall” was made as a community service.

“It’s important that we support our local businesses during this pandemic because we want our businesses to be there for us when we get through this difficult time," Hoisington said. "People are hurting. Businesses are hurting. And as a community, we need to support each other.”

Other sources of reliable information include:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Kansas Department of Health and Environment - https://govstatus.egov.com/coronavirus 

City of Great Bend Covid-19 Update -https://www.greatbendks.net/AlertCenter.aspx