Dallas County Sees Slight Increase In Positivity Rate
DALLAS — Dallas County Health and Human Services reports 398 additional confirmed cases of 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). This brings the total confirmed case count in Dallas County to 73,453 including 944 confirmed deaths. The total number of probable cases in Dallas County is 3,046, including 10 probable deaths from COVID-19.
Of the 398 new cases we are reporting today, 203 came through the Texas Department of State Health Services’ (DSHS) electronic laboratory reporting (ELR) system with 195 from older months. Please see a provisional breakdown below of these newly reported cases by date of collection:
The additional death being reported today is of a man in his 80’s who was a resident of the City of Lancaster. He had been hospitalized, and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- The provisional 7-day average daily new confirmed and probable cases (by date of test collection) for CDC week 35 has increased slightly to 244. The percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 has also increased, with 10.8% of symptomatic patients presenting to area hospitals testing positive in week 35.
- From August 15th through 28th, 317 school-aged children between 5 to 17 years of age were diagnosed with COVID-19 in Dallas County. About 43% of these cases were high school age (14 to 17 years). By zip code of residence, 167 (53%) of these children were projected to have been enrolled in Dallas ISD schools.
- Of all confirmed cases requiring hospitalization to date, more than two-thirds have been under 65 years of age. Diabetes has been an underlying high-risk health condition reported in about a third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
- Of the total confirmed deaths reported to date, about 25% have been associated with long-term care facilities.
There were 352 COVID-19 patients in acute care in Dallas County for the period ending on Friday, September 4. The number of emergency room visits for COVID-19 like symptoms in Dallas County was 438 for the 24 hour period ending on Friday, September 4, which represents around 20 percent of all emergency department visits in the county according to information reported to the North Central Texas Trauma Regional Advisory Council. While these numbers represent a significant decline from record highs in July, the disruptive impact of COVID-19 on our populations and health care systems remains.
Judge Jenkins Says This Week Ties For 7th Deadliest Week
“This week ends with a preliminary daily average of 259 new cases, which is up from last week. When you include this week’s old cases from the state’s flawed ELR system, the daily average this week is 350. We also lost 45 people this week, which ties for the seventh deadliest week thus far for COVID-19. These numbers point out the importance of continuing to mask whenever around people outside your home and maintain six-foot distance from them. Frequently wash your hands. Please avoid unnecessary trips and exposure.
If we all make smart decisions to limit our risk; less people will get sick, more businesses will thrive, and our children can get back to school sooner rather than later. This weekend is a critical time for us. The numbers have been lowering, but three-day weekends have historically led to more infections as people get around family and friends attending functions where there is more exposure than in a normal weekend. We cannot let that happen this weekend.
We cannot not see a big bump in cases like we saw ten days after Easter/Passover and ten days after Memorial Day. Should we see an increase in cases from this weekend, it could be the spring before we can get those numbers back down. It is very important everyone make the best decisions to keep themselves and their families safe this holiday. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable rest of the Labor Day weekend,” 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
