Dallas County added 1,243 new confirmed and likely cases of COVID-19 Monday along with 15 more deaths attributed to the virus. Meanwhile, county officials warn of projections that predict 1,500 people could be hospitalized with the virus in the county before Jan. 5 and could cause “less than optimal” care at Dallas County hospitals.
Of the cases reported Monday, the county said 1,142 were confirmed cases and 101 were probable cases (antigen test), bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the county in March to 167,900 and the number of probable cases. (antigen test) at 20,223. The total number of confirmed and probable cases in the county is now 188,123. Over the past seven days, Dallas County officials have confirmed 13,583 confirmed and probable cases of the virus.
“Today we add up to 1,243 cases and announce 15 more deaths in the battle against COVID. We started the day with 27 rooms available at all Dallas County hospitals,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a statement. “UT Southwestern projects that our hospitalization numbers will be between our current level and 1,500 COVID cases in hospitals on January 5. If we reach the highest end of that number, we will go through the ICU beds and we will be forced to have less than optimal care. “
Among the last 15 victims are a forty-year-old man from Garland who died at the hospital; a man in his 50s from Garland who resided in a long-term care facility; a fifty-year-old woman from Dallas; a woman in her 60s from Dallas who lived in a long-term care facility; a sixty-year-old man from Dallas; an eighty-year-old Dallas woman who died at the hospital; an eighty-year-old woman from Dallas; an eighty-year-old Dallas man who died at the hospital; a 60-year-old man from Lancaster; a 60-year-old man from Farmers Branch; a 70-year-old man from Irving; a 70-year-old man from Mesquite; a 70-year-old woman from Mesquite; a 70-year-old man from Rowlett; an eighty-year-old woman from DeSoto. All patients had been hospitalized and all but one, a 70-year-old man from Mesquite, had underlying diseases.
County officials said Monday there were 1,580 deaths in the county attributed to the virus. In the summer, Dr. Philip Huang, director of the Dallas County Department of Health and Human Services, said COVID-19 is the third leading cause of death in the county behind heart disease and cancer.
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The county said the 7-day provisional average for new confirmed and probable cases by CDC week 50 evidence collection date was 1,722, representing a rate of 65.3 new cases per day for each case. 100,000 residents.
In the past 30 days, there have been 4,955 cases of COVID-19 in children and school-age staff from more than 764 separate K-12 schools in Dallas County, including 692 staff members. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 21 school nurses have been diagnosed with COVID-19.
Jenkins issued a warning to those planning traditional meetings on New Year’s Eve, urging them to reconsider their plans and take precautions against the spread of the virus.
“To help our health heroes help you, make smart decisions and follow doctors’ advice during the New Year’s season. Wear the mask when you’re close to people you don’t live with and avoid crowds and meetings. “We all need to think of ways to celebrate the New Year that are safe, not just for us, but for those who will inevitably catch the virus from the people who contract it this New Year,” Jenkins said. “Maybe it’s not you, but your grandmother or the grandmother of someone else who pays a lot for your decision to celebrate a traditional New Year celebration. Please help make the small sacrifice of patriotism to keep our community and our strong country even anyone who wants the vaccine can get it and can have their chance to protect them from the virus. “