Dallas County Reports 906 Additional COVID-19 Cases, 8 Deaths
DALLAS — Yesterday Dallas County reported the second highest single day new COVID cases, today they report 906 additional positive cases of 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Out of those 649 are confirmed cases and 257 are probable cases. There is a cumulative total of 131,479 cases (PCR test), including 1,230 confirmed deaths. There is a cumulative total of 13,166 probable cases (antigen test), including 38 probable deaths.
With hospitalizations remaining high throughout the DFW region, GA-32 was triggered at 12:01 am today, which reduces occupancy levels. It also requires bars to close and elective surgeries to be canceled.
Jenkins Says Individual Actions Make a Difference
“Today we add 906 new COVID positive cases and eight deaths. It’s up to all of us to renew our strength and to flatten the curve, so that less people will get sick and our economy will remain strong for as long as possible until the vaccine can be widely administered.
Now is the time for patriotism. Think of the sacrifices that our forefathers made during World War II and the Cold War to protect America. Whether serving in the military or supporting the effort at home, they did things that were so much more difficult than what we’re being asked to do now. Seeing the vaccine around the corner, we know that it is only a short delay on the get-togethers, trips to bars and restaurants, and in-person shopping experiences that the doctors and the facts are making clear to us are just not safe to do now. We know that masks work and that when we avoid crowds, we lessen the chance for COVID spreading, not just to us and to our families, but to others.
North Texas Can Flatten The Curve
Remember that if there’s an increase in COVID in your family or your company, that will eventually trickle to a population and a person who is ill-equipped to fight the virus even if the course of your sickness is less severe. This is the essence of patriotism: doing things that are not necessarily what we want to do at the moment but are sacrificial to protect not just ourselves but our community and our country.
I know we can do this North Texas, we’ve done it before, we just need to hold on a little bit longer. Remember, don’t focus on your neighbors who have lost their nerve or resolve for doing things that you believe are unsafe. Rather, focus on your own actions and the actions of people you have influence over in your families or workplace, and think of ways to get just a little bit safer which means being around crowds just a little bit less.
Some of the many ways that we can be just a little bit safer include curbside or grocery delivery, forgoing trips to the gym, staying out of restaurants and bars, doing your holiday shopping online or calling ahead to the store, selecting your items and having them bring them out curbside. When we all do those incremental changes in our individual behavior, it can have a big impact on public health, our economy, and the strength of our community and country,” said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.
All Dallas County COVID-19 Updates and Information can be found here: https://www.dallascounty.org/covid-19/ and all guidance documents can be found here: https://www.dallascounty.org/covid-19/guidance-health.php
The additional deaths being reported today include the following:
- A woman in her 30’s who was a resident of the City of Mesquite. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 60’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 60’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been hospitalized, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 70’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 70’s who was a resident of the City Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 80’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. She had been hospitalized, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 80’s who was a resident of the City of Dallas. She had been hospitalized, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
UTSW Modeling Projects Hospitalizations Will Continue Rising Unless Something Changes
The provisional seven-day average of daily new confirmed and probable cases (by date of test collection) for CDC week 47 was to 1,347, which is a rate of 51.1 daily new cases per 100,000 residents. The percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 has increased, with 17.3% of symptomatic patients presenting to area hospitals testing positive in week 47 (week ending 11/21/20).
There were 802 COVID-19 patients in acute care in Dallas County for the period ending on Thursday, December 3. The number of emergency room visits for COVID-19 like symptoms in Dallas County was 509 for the same time period, which represents around 21 percent of all emergency department visits in the county according to information reported to the North Central Texas Trauma Regional Advisory Council. Our hospitals are seeing record numbers of patients and are concerned about additional increases.
Modeling from UTSW shows that hospitalizations could be as high as 1,250 in Dallas County by December 15th. Individual actions such as avoiding indoor events and venues are critical to disrupting spread and reducing the strain on our health systems. You can find additional information on risk-level monitoring data here.
