KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Hospitalization rates are continuing to decline around the Kansas City area as case rates and death numbers drop. It’s unclear if or when the next COVID-19 variant will emerge, but omicron appears to be on its way out. Here’s the latest data. As of Tuesday, the rolling average of new COVID-19 cases across the metro area is around 231 per day over seven days, according to data tracked by The Kansas City Star. That’s lower than last week’s average of 843, although the number is lowered by the reporting lag over the holiday weekend. There have been approximately 4.4 deaths per …