On Friday, January 8, County Judge Todd Little and Ellis County Municipality Leadership – listed below – issued a letter to The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Public Health Region â…” regarding additional COVID-19 vaccine allotment for Ellis County.
The issued letter distributed January 8, 2021, was signed by:
- Ellis County Judge Todd Little, Ellis County, TX
- Mayor Ginger Gonzales, City of Alma
- Mayor Larry Gilbert, City of Bardwell
- Mayor Angie Juenemann, City of Ennis
- Mayor Tommy Scott, City of Ferris
- Mayor Joy Landry, City of Maypearl
- Mayor Bryant Cockran, City of Italy
- Mayor Bruce Perryman, City of Milford
- Mayor Richard Reno, City of Midlothian
- Mayor Richard Dormier, City of Ovilla
- Mayor Tom Leverentz, City of Oak Leaf
- Mayor Mark Stanfill, City of Red Oak
- Mayor Kenneth Bateman, City of Palmer
- Mayor David Hill, City of Waxahachie
High Positivity Rates in Ellis County, Insufficient Vaccine Allotment
In the letter, Judge Little points out that currently Ellis County mobile testing sites are seeing 20-30% positivity rates. Hospitals in Ellis County are at “max capacity” as are others across the TSA Region E. He continues to point out to Texas DSHS that Ellis County has been in the top four highest percentage in TSA-E since early November. Over the past three weeks, since vaccines have been distributed Ellis County received 1600 doses. Currently, Ellis County does not have enough vaccine to administer to Phase 1A and Phase 1B residents.
The letter also states that “with that low amount we are not able to vaccinate any of our first responders, Independent School District nurses, or other hospital staff within the community. However, according to the City of Midlothian on December 23, “Midlothian firefighters/EMS responders lined up to receive their first doses of the vaccine from Pharmacy Manager Crystal Dixon, Pharm.D at Brookshires. More first responders will be vaccinated next week and the first group will receive their second dose in 28 days.”
For all Texas COVID-19 vaccine information, go to dshs.texas.gov/coronavirus/immunize/vaccine.aspx
Ellis County Has 1,304 Active COVID-19 Cases
The Ellis County dashboard, last updated on 1/8 at 9:55 am, shows 198 of 235 hospital beds are currently occupied. Out of the 198 patients, 120 of those have COVID-19. The ICU has activated surge capacity and 23 of 29 beds are occupied by COVID-19 patients.
DSHS currently shows 1,304 active COVID-19 cases in Ellis County (EC dash shows 1,049), numbers are from 1/8/2021. DSHS reports 181 COVID-19 deaths in Ellis County, but the Ellis County dashboard shows 196 COVID deaths.
Need a COVID-19 test? Free, drive-thru COVID-19 testing will be provided by WellHealth Jan. 5 – 29 (Tes., Wed., Thurs., and Fri.) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Midlothian Senior Activity Center, 4 Community Circle Drive, Midlothian, Texas 76065. This site uses the saliva method and results will be available within 48-96 hours. Register on site or pre-register for an appointment at www.gogettested.com.
