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Mayor Turner Announces Houston Health Department Opening of COVID-19 Vaccine Site for the Public
An interactive CDC map shows how the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is going in your state — and how far the US lags behind its goal
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention unveiled major updates to its vaccine tracking dashboard on Thursday, including an interactive map that shows how vaccine distribution and administration is going in every US state and territory.
Previously, the website tracked only two broad measurements of US COVID-19 vaccination efforts: doses distributed and doses administered in total nationwide.
Now, the tracker lists the following details for each state: total doses distributed, total doses distributed per 100,000 people, and the number of people who have received their first dose. It also includes information on how many doses have been distributed and allocated in total, as well as how many doses have been distributed to and administered in long-term care facilities. You can access the map here.
The tracker is slated to get updated on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, except for holidays (in those cases, the tracker will be updated the day after a holiday).
North Texas Plunges over 400,000 COVID Cases
North Texas has plunged over the 400,000 marks in Coronavirus cases.
Dallas county has more than 172,000 positive tests, Tarrant county just eclipsed 150,000, Collin county at more than 43,000, and Denton over 39,000. The Dallas-Fort Worth area approached another 6,000 new cases of COVID-19, Thursday.
Dallas county health officials saw almost 1,800 new cases, Tarrant county over 3,100 infections, while Collin and Denton’s counties combined for 993 additional cases of Coronavirus. The Metroplex saw another 23 deaths attributed to the pandemic, with 17 in Dallas County, 5 in Denton, and one fatality in Tarrant county.
The death toll in Dallas county sits at more than 1,600, Tarrant county nearly 1,500, while Collin and Denton’s counties have combined for 584 fatalities.
Texas is nearing 1.6 million cases and with 349 attributed deaths to COVID-19, Thursday, Texas has lost 27,437 residents.
Dallas county 172,165 positive tests (1,774 new), 1,628 deaths (17 new), 0.9% mortality rate
Tarrant county 150,004 positive tests (3,116 new), 1,494 deaths (1 new), 1% mortality rate
Collin county 43,368 positive tests (495 new), 370 deaths, 0.9% mortality rate
Denton county 39,182 positive tests (498 new), 214 deaths (5 new), 0.5% mortality rate
Metroplex 404,719 positive tests (5,883 new), 3,706 deaths (23 new), 0.9% mortality rate
Texas 1,551,250 positive tests (14,604 new), 27,437 deaths (349 new), 1.8% mortality rate
‘We’ll be in worse shape’ | Some still plan to celebrate despite warning to cancel gatherings
The rain isn’t the only thing washing away our New Year’s Eve plans. Across the world, the time-honored tradition will look very different.
Australia is scaling back their fireworks, and the Times Square ball will drop in front of an empty street.
Here in Houston, City Centre canceled their fireworks along with Kemah Boardwalk.
But despite the county’s emergency warning sent out Wednesday urging residents to cancel gatherings, some still plan to celebrate.
“We expect that people are still going to gather, but we’re hoping that people don’t and that they continue to listen to our messaging,” Dr. Maria Rivera, with Harris County Public Health, said.
Restaurants are booking reservations, and celebrations are still happening.
But it’s those mass gatherings, even the small ones at home, that Dr. Rivera says are most concerning.
“People gathering around the dinner table, sharing food, we know that’s a place transmission happens,” she said.
She’s urging people to only gather with those already in their household.
She also said if you go out, like to a restaurant, only do so with your household, wear your mask and keep your distance from others.
In a county where COVID cases are still rising “we’re starting to see the increases after Christmas, even though it was only last week,” she explained.
Another holiday could be devastating.
“We’re very, very concerned that in the midst of all this rise if people continue to gather and gather today, that we’ll be in worse shape in the next couple of weeks,” she said.
Texas sets another record for COVID-19 patients in the hospital
For the fourth day in a row, the state of Texas has set a record for the number of COVID-19 patients in the hospital.
On Thursday, the number of people in the state who were in the hospital with COVID-19 jumped to 12,268. It’s the first time the state has surpassed 12,000.
The state’s positivity rate is also on the rise. On Thursday, Texas reported molecular tests had 20.53 percent positivity. That’s up from Wednesday’s number, which was 18.74 percent.
ICU in the Texas Medical Center
Here in Houston, the Texas Medical Center is operating in ICU Phase 2. All 13,300 of their regular ICU beds in Phase 1 are full. Thirty-four percent of those beds in Phase 1 have COVID patients in them.
ICU phase 2 allocates an extra 373 beds to handle an increase in patients, regardless of their diagnoses.
There is also a Phase 3, which doctors are prepared for. That would be an additional 504 beds. But hospital officials say Phase 3 isn’t sustainable long term.
Dr. James McDeavitt, SVP and Dean of clinical affairs for Baylor College of Medicine said earlier in the pandemic that hospital staff can sustain Phase 3 for roughly 4 weeks. Anything longer would overwhelm hospital employees and affect patient care.
Hospital levels and rollbacks
When Gov. Abbott signed an executive order back in October to further reopen the state, one stipulation was that if a trauma region had seven straight days of COVID patients accounting for 15 percent or higher of hospital capacity, they would have to reduce the occupancy of indoor businesses from 75 percent to 50 percent and stop elective surgeries.
So far, two regions in our area have had to roll back. One of those regions includes Chambers, Galveston, Liberty, and Brazoria Counties. Another includes Brazos, Grimes, and Washington Counties.
The region that includes Harris, Fort Bend, and Montgomery Counties is now at five days in a row above 15 percent.
Harris County issued a public safety alert Wednesday afternoon telling residents not to celebrate the New Year’s holiday with anyone outside of their household.
The alert states that COVID-19 is surging at a dangerous rate and that residents should cancel all gatherings for the holiday, urging them to “protect yourself, family and healthcare workers.”
As the New Year approaches there are growing concerns about how New Year’s Eve celebrations could lead to a deadlier COVID-19 surge and start to 2021.
“The concern for New Year’s Eve is totally different,” said Dr. Ali Mokdad. “It’s a different kind of celebration. People celebrate with friends, family and sometimes people they don’t know. It could be a super spreader event on top of what you’re seeing in Texas.”
Dr. Mokdad is a part of the University of Washington team behind a leading COVID-19 model the White House has relied upon throughout the pandemic. That model points to a worsening situation in Texas, much worse than the summer surge.
“Right now as the cases are increasing, we’re not seeing a rise in the prevalence of wearing masks and mobility is increasing,” Mokdad said.
Fewer masks and more people on the move, it’s been a crippling combo that fueled the winter surge in Texas. More than 60 percent of the state’s ICU beds are being used for COVID patients now.
And the peak is still to come. It’s expected on Jan. 9.
What’s Next with the COVID‑19 Vaccine in Texas
“All providers that have received COVID-19 vaccine must immediately vaccinate healthcare workers, Texans over the age of 65, and people with medical conditions that put them at a greater risk of severe disease or death from COVID-19. No vaccine should be kept in reserve.”
– DSHS Commissioner John Hellerstedt, M.D.
Texas continues to receive doses of the Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines and is distributing statewide to hospitals, pharmacies, local health departments, freestanding ERs, and other clinics.
Who’s getting the vaccine now?
If you are a front-line healthcare worker or resident of a long-term care facility, you are eligible now to receive the vaccine, since December 14. This group is considered Phase 1A.
If you are in Phase 1B, you are also eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccine, depending on availability and the vaccine provider. Vaccine supply remains limited, but more vaccines will be delivered to providers each week. Phase 1B recipients include:
- People 65 years of age and older
- People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as but not limited to:
- Cancer
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies
- Solid-organ transplantation
- Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher)
- Pregnancy
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes mellitus
If you are in Phase 1A or 1B, please visit the Texas COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Locations map to see if and where you might be able to get a vaccine today. Remember, your ability to get a vaccine today or this week will depend on vaccine availability at your provider’s office, clinic, or facility. Please call ahead to your provider.
Who’s getting the vaccine next and when?
The Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel (EVAP) is considering what criteria could be used for later stages of vaccine distribution. This webpage will be updated when those decisions are completed.
Spring 2021 is the best estimate of when the vaccine will be available for the general public, but that may change. It depends on vaccine production and how quickly other vaccines become available.
What do I need to do now?
- Phase 1A: If you are a healthcare worker, contact your employer. If you are a long-term care resident,
contact your caretaker. - Phase 1B: Please visit the Texas COVID-19 Vaccine Provider Locations map to see vaccine providers near you.
- Do not show up at a hospital or clinic looking for a vaccine.
- Instead please check their website for information about vaccine availability. Call if the website doesn’t answer your questions.
Remember, your ability to get a vaccine today or this week will depend on vaccine supply at hospitals, clinics. Texas receives more vaccine shipments each week. Please check this page frequently for updates.
Dec. 31 COVID-19 Update: 1 Fatality, 1 New Case, 6 Recoveries, 26 In COVID Unit
Texas Department of State Health Service and Hopkins County/Sulphur Springs Emergency Management’s Dec. 31 COVID-19 updates showed one new probable COVID-19 cases, six additional recoveries, and one additional COVID-19 fatality for Hopkins County. While there were fewer patients in the local COVID unit Thursday the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations in Trauma Service area F hospitals was the highest reported to date. More women than men were reported to have received the vaccine as of Dec. 30, according to the Dec. 31 COVID-19 Vaccinations dashboard.
Dec. 31 COVID-19 Case Counts
Only one new probable COVID-19 case was reported for Hopkins County on Thursday. That makes 17 new probable cases so far this week, 193 new probable COVID-19 cases from Dec. 11-Dec. 31, and a total of 1,117 probable COVID-19 cases reported for Hopkins County since the state began tracking the data.
A probable COVID-19 case is determined when a person either tests positive through an antigen test or has a combination of symptoms and a known exposure to someone with COVID-19 without a more likely diagnosis.
The DSHS Dec. 31 COVID-19 Texas Case Counts dashboard also showed 1,122 confirmed COVID-19 cases on Dec. 31, four fewer cases than were reported on Dec. 30. DSHS did not indicate the reason for the correction. In the past, when cases have been removed from the case counts it has been due to duplications. That reduces the total number of new confirmed cases to 48 this week and 290 confirmed cases this month.
A confirmed COVID-19 case is one in which an individual receives a positive result through a molecular test that looks for the virus’s genetic material.
Combined, that’s 2,239 total COVID-19 cases reported for Hopkins County since March, including 2,053 people who have recovered from the virus. Six of those recoveries were reported on New Year’s Eve, and 1,359 from Dec. 11 to Dec. 31, although 810 were probable case recoveries added to the total on Dec. 11, when confirmed and probable case recoveries were combined. That’s 6.04 percent of the overall population in Hopkins County who have had COVID-19 cases so far this year.
The DSHS Dec. 31 COVID-19 Case Counts dashboard also showed 71 COVID-19 fatalities for Hopkins County, which means another Hopkins County resident was confirmed to have died from COVID-19. That’s 0.19 percent of the total population who have died from the virus, and a fatality rate of 3.17 percent among all Hopkins County COVID-19 cases this year.
Overall, that leaves 115 active COVID-19 cases in Hopkins County on Dec. 31, 10 less than were reported Wednesday.
COVID-19 Vaccinations
The DSHS Dec. 31 COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard showed 134 had received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of 11:59 p.m. Dec. 30, that 29 more vaccinations reported for Hopkins County on Wednesday. Three vaccines were administered Dec. 13-19, 48 Dec. 20-26, and the rest were administered over the past four days.
According to the DSHS, 282,515 people in Texas have received the first dose of the vaccine. Of those, more women than men have taken the first dose of the vaccine, and more people ages 16-49 years have been vaccinated than all of the other age categories combined. In fact, almost as many women ages 16-49 have received the vaccine as all people ages 50 and older.
In Hopkins County, 61 people ages 16-49 have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine: 40 women and 21 men. As of 11:59 p.m. Dec. 30, only 31 people ages 50-64 received the first dose of the vaccine, 25 women and 6 men; 33 people ages 65-79, 19 women and 14 men; and nine people age 80 or older, seven women and two men.
According to the dashboard, 400 doses of Moderna have been received by Hopkins County providers, 100 by the hospital, 200 by the medical clinic, and 100 the pharmacy.
Hospital Reports
According to HC/SSEM’s Dec. 31 COVID-19 update, the patient count in the COVID Unit at CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital-Sulphur Springs shrunk from 30 patients on Wednesday to 26 patients on Thursday, which is still higher than the 23 COVID-19 positive patients in the COVID unit on Monday and 24 on Tuesday.
COVID-19 hospitalizations across Trauma Service Area F, which encompasses most of Northeast Texas, including Sulphur Springs and CMFH-SS, peaked Dec. 31 at 191 patients. That’s 24 more COVID-19 hospitalizations than were reported Wednesday. In fact, Thursday’s total is the most patients in TSA-F hospitals in one day since the state began tracking the data.
Not surprisingly, as the COVID-19 cases rose so did the overall patients counts across TSA-F, which also reduces the number of specialized equipment available at hospitals across the area.
There were 1,120 total staffed hospital beds in TSA-F on Dec. 31, three more than were reported on Wednesday. The number of staffed inpatient beds in TSA-F rose from 1,021 on Wednesday to 1,028 on Thursday. A total of 696 hospitalizations were reported on New Year’s Eve, an increase of 47 patients from the day before.
The number of available hospital beds across TSA-F surprisingly increased from 327 on Dec. 30 to 332 on Dec. 31. The number of ICU beds available got even smaller, reduced from just seven across TSA-F on Wednesday to only four on Thursday. DSHS’ Dec. 31 COVID-19 Test and Hospital Data dashboard also showed 72 ventilators available across TSA-F, three less than on Wednesday.
The rise in overall hospital numbers wasn’t enough to offset the rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations, which Dec. 31 accounted for 17.05 percent of the total hospital capacity for TSA-F. In fact, TSA-F’s COVID-19 hospitalizations have been at or above the 15 percent threshold established in GA-32 as high hospital capacity for eight of the last nine days, and the last five consecutively. The capacity dipped to 14.95 percent on Dec. 26, after three consecutive days above the 15 percent high capacity threshold, then rose to 15.47 percent Sunday, 17.23 percent on Monday, 15,96 percent Tuesday, 15 Wednesday, and was back up to 17.05 percent on Thursday.
COVID-19 Testing
HC/SSEM’s Dec. 31 COVID-19 update showed a total of 6,968 molecular COVID-19 tests have been conducted at the free testing site in Sulphur Springs since it opened on Sept. 25. That means 94 additional tests were performed at the free testing site on Dec. 30, increasing the number conducted in the last three days at 128-A Jefferson Street to 355 and Dec. 1-30 to 2,437.
DSHS reported a total of 14,072 COVID-19 tests conducted for Hopkins County this year, including 11,340 molecular or viral tests, 1,152 antigen tests, and 1,580 antibody tests. That’s 476 additional tests reported for Hopkins County from Dec. 29 to Dec. 30.
The free center in Sulphur Springs will be closed on New Year’s Day but will resume weekdays in January from 9 a.m.to 6 p.m. and Saturdays until 5 p.m. at 128-A Jefferson Street.
Online registration is required at www.GoGetTested.com in order to be tested at the free testing center. Testing is open to anyone regardless of address. Even children ages 3 and up can be tested, provided an adult register, and accompanies them to have the oral swab test performed. The Sulphur Springs free testing site is not a drive-through location. Testing is conducted inside the building.
Individuals should refrain from eating, drinking or using tobacco products a minimum of 15-20 minutes before or testing will be delayed. Those testing will need to bring a photo ID and the number provided upon registration with them to the test location. Masks must be worn into the testing center. Testing typically takes about 5 minutes.
Nursing Home Reports
Two additional resident fatalities were reported at Sulphur Springs nursing facilities, for a total of 47 nursing home residents who have died from COVID-19 from March through Dec. 17, the most recent data available from Texas Health and Human Services.
Carriage House reported one additional resident fatality on Dec. 17, for a total of 28 resident deaths from the 78 who have tested positive for COVID-19. Five employees of Carriage House were reported to still have COVID-19. One additional resident at Carriage House also reportedly tested positive for COVID-19, giving the facility nine active resident cases on Dec. 17, according to the HHS Dec. 31 COVID-19 nursing homes report.
Rock Creek Health and Rehabilitation LLC also reported one additional COVID-19 deaths, for a total of 5 fatalities from the 51 residents who have tested positive for the virus since March. One additional resident also tested positive for COVID-19 at Rock Creek, giving the facility a total of 37 active resident cases and 18 active employee cases of COVID-19 on Dec. 17.
Sulphur Springs Health and Rehabilitation reported one additional employee had tested positive for COVID-19, giving the facility a total of three active employee cases on Dec. 17.
Sunny Springs Nursing and Rehab on Dec. 17 reported no active cases in either residents or employees.
Publicación 1187 de HOUSTON – Revista Digital 31 de diciembre 2020– 06 de enero 2021
Gracias por SEGUIRNOS, este artículo contiene la revista digital de HOUSTON de ¡Que Onda Magazine! De fecha 31 de diciembre del 2020 – 06 de enero del 2021
California has nation’s 2nd confirmed case of strain from UK
California on Wednesday announced the nation’s second confirmed case of the new and apparently more contagious variant of the coronavirus, offering a strong indication that the infection is spreading more widely in the United States.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the infection found in Southern California during an online conversation with Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
“I don’t think Californians should think that this is odd. It’s to be expected,” Fauci said.
Newsom did not provide any details about the person who was infected.
“The virus is becoming more fit, and we’re like a deer in the headlights,” warned Dr. Eric Topol, head of Scripps Research Translational Institute. He noted that the U.S. does far less genetic sequencing of virus samples to discover variants than other developed nations and thus was probably slow to detect the new mutation.