Ellis County Reports 173 Active COVID-19 Cases, 40 Deaths

0
Ellis County COVID 10-23 poster

COVID-19 Cases In Ellis County As Of 10/23/2020

COVID-19 cases are rising…again. And medical experts warn as the temperatures drop, activities move inside, and people gather for the holidays the cases will continue to rise. For the most part Ellis County hasn’t experienced a severe outbreak even as schools have reopened and school sports have returned.

With that being said, according to the Ellis County Office of Emergency Management, there are currently 31 patients in the hospital with COVID-19. Six of those patients are in the ICU, 25 of them are in a MedSurg unit. But Ellis County has a total of 18 ICU beds and 13 of those are currently occupied. Out of 215 total hospital beds in Ellis County, 147 are occupied, that’s 68.3% of the hospital beds.

Now, the information from DSHS differs from what Ellis County reports from the THT. According to DSHS, there are currently 95 active COVID-19 cases in Ellis County and 76 deaths. Also, DSHS says Ellis County has had a total of 4,832 coronavirus cases to date whereas Ellis County website shows 5,088 total cases.

CDC Updates Definition of Close Contact

The Centers for Disease Control posts their numbers from USAfacts.org and shows Ellis County with 4,816 (known cases) and 75 deaths.

Please note the CDC update their definition of “close contact” this week. From their website: “Someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period* starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated.””

 

Seven Day Data In Texas Per DSHS

In Texas overall, Texas has averaged over the past 7 days:
⬆️4,292 new cases per day
⬆️4,386 current hospitalizations
⬇️69 new fatalities reported per day

According to the TEA, there are 12,765 cumulative positive COVID-19 student cases and 8,248 cumulative positive cases in staff.

COVID-19 Texas Public Schools graph

Meanwhile some schools in Ellis County have decided to return to in person learning only. Waxahachie ISD decided at the October 12 board meeting, that all Waxahachie ISD students will return in-person on November 2. During Thursday’s community update from MISD, a parent commented asking if MISD also had plans to suspend virtual learning? MISD responded, “Not at this time due to the need to offer virtual as an option for families who have medical challenges.”