Coronavirus updates for Texas

Last updated on Tuesday, May 5 at 1:30 p.m. E.D.T.

Texas currently has 33,369 confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to the state’s Department of Health and Human services. At least 905 people have died and an estimated 16,090 people have recovered.  Texas is the second-most populous state, but is far from the state with the most U.S. coronavirus cases;  as of Friday, several states had more cases than the Lone Star State.

Texas likely has more cases than reported; though 407,398 tests have been conducted, that represents a relatively low rate of testing per capita. 

Latest updates

—Texas began reopening its economy May 1, allowing retail, movie theaters, restaurants and other businesses to reopen at 25% occupancy. Museums and libraries will also reopen at 25% reoccupancy, though patrons will be barred from touching hands-on exhibits, the Texas Tribune reported. A second phase, which will allow 50% occupancy, could come as soon as May 18. Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order supersedes local jurisdiction orders, meaning counties that have more restrictive guidelines reopened despite them. 

—The Lone Star State also logged its worst week yet in terms of deaths and infections, the Houston Chronicle reported. The week that ended May 1 logged 7,000 new cases and 221 deaths, an increase of 24% and 33%, the Chronicle reported.

—A new model from the University of Texas at Austin predicts that the Lone Star State  hit its peak on April 26. The model uses mobile phone location data to see how social-distancing has impacted people’s movement, but unlike statistical epidemiological models, which try to forecast the number of cases and deaths based on the transmissibility and time-course of a disease, this model uses statistical curve-fitting to try to predict deaths. Similar models, such as one by the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics model, have been criticized for failing to predict deaths and hospitalizations even a day or two into the future.

—Abbott issued an executive order mandating a “Strike Force to Open Texas” that will help guide the reopening of the state’s economy in line with medical guidance, according to the order. The executive order says retail businesses are free to open after April 24. Businesses that reopen should adhere to certain social distancing guidelines, such as being screened for symptoms of COVID-19, contact with a known infected case or a fever exceeding 100.0 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius). Employees must be trained in environmental safety policies, wear face coverings, and maintain at least 6 feet (1.8 meters) distance from others. Schools will remain closed through the end of the year.

—At least 160 of 1,222 nursing homes in the state have at least one case of COVID-19, and 38 residents or staff members have died, the Texas Tribune reported.

—Rural Texas counties seem to have been mostly spared so far from COVID-19. However, a new model from the University of Texas at Austin suggests there may be silent spread across these rural areas.  Of Texas’ 254 counties, 164 have reported positive cases, and those counties likely have at least a 50% chance of having hidden community transmission, Texas Monthly reported. Counties with three or more cases have a 79% chance of having hidden community spread.

—Roughly 75% of deaths have occurred in those over age 60, according to the Dallas Morning News. However, several people in their 40s and 30s have died — among them was Adolph “T.J.” Mendez of New Braunfels. The 44-year-old was described by his family as a “perfectly healthy” father of six, who worked out and took vitamins every day, according to the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung. In Dallas County, a 17-year-old Lancaster girl died of COVID-19, the Dallas Morning News reported. The teen, Jameela Dirrean-Emoni Barber, had no underlying conditions and was a member of the National Honor Society, a junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps member, and a ” delight to have around,” her principal, Eleanor Webb, told the Dallas Morning News. 

—Texas Department of Public Safety workers are stepping up efforts to track visitors from other states. Checkpoints had been set up along the Texas-Louisiana border, and drivers were required to provide personal information, such as their names, contact information and where they planned to self-quarantine.

—A nursing home in Texas City had nearly  80 residents who tested positive for COVID-19. About 30 of them have received the antimalarial hydroxychloroquine, Abbott said. The governor said he would provide updates on those patients’ outcomes.

—The majority of patients at a San Antonio nursing home and rehabilitation center have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the Texas Tribune reported. A total of 67 of 84 residents have tested positive, along with eight of the 60 staff members, according to the Texas Tribune. At least two of the staffers who tested positive also worked in other facilities. In response, San Antonio mayor Ron Nirenberg said he was amending his public health order to prohibit staffers from working in multiple facilities.

—Several clinical trials  of COVID-19 treatments are starting up or underway in Texas: UT Southwestern in Dallas is beginning two trials of the antiviral remdesevir, as well as one of the anti-inflammatory drug sarilumab, to see if it can reduce the deadly immune overreaction, according to the Dallas Morning News. And Houston Methodist is testing the use of convalescent plasma, or an infusion of antibodies from people who have recovered from the disease.

—At least 44 students at the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a spring break trip to Mexico, according to The New York Times.  The group of 70 spring breakers took a chartered flight on March 14 and most returned on March 19, according to The Times. 

—Abbott issued an executive order telling people statewide to stay at home, though he declined to call it a “shelter-in-place” order. Schools will remain closed till May 4, according to the new order. Like similar orders in other states, this one asks people to stay home except when pursuing activities such as getting groceries, exercising, or going to work in essential industries.

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Timeline of coronavirus in Texas

• May 1: Gov. Greg Abbott allows businesses such as shopping malls, movie theaters and  restaurants to reopen provided they limit themselves to 25% occupancy.
• April 17: Abbott issues an executive order that enables the reopening of business as of April 24. Businesses will still have to adhere to certain guidelines, such as social distancing and fever and symptom checks.
• April 12: Gov. Greg Abbott extended his disaster proclamation, which was initially issued March 13.
• March 31: Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order asking people to stay home for the month of April, except to pursue essential activities, such as procuring food, medicine, caring for a loved one or pet or getting exercise. Those who work in one of several essential industries, such as the energy sector, healthcare or critical manufacturing, will be able to go to their jobs. Religious services are considered an essential service, and so the new order supersedes more stringent orders on the county level that had prohibited large gatherings for any reason.  The new order is more stringent than Abbott’s March 19 one, which asked people to limit gatherings larger than 10 people. This one asks people to minimize all exposure to people outside their household whenever possible.
• March 31: Abbott extended the closure of schools and non-essential businesses until at least May 4.
• March 29: Abbott issued a new executive order to prevent imported cases entering the state. The order requires anyone who enters the state from one of several hard-hit regions to undergo a mandatory 14-day self-quarantine, KXAN reported. Those regions include Atlanta, Miami, Detroit, the states of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Louisiana and California. Travel is being restricted by road and air. Visitors must register with state troopers and will be subject to check-ins. Those who violate the order face 180 days in jail or a $1,000 fine, or both, according to KXAN.
• March 29: Abbott also issued an executive order to prevent the release of “dangerous criminals and felons” during the outbreak. Some of the largest county jails in the state — including those in Dallas and Harris County — have outbreaks, and officials have considered shrinking populations and releasing some of those housed there. The new order prevents those who have been accused of or convicted of violent crimes from being released from jail unless they pay bail.
• March 25: President Donald Trump approved Abbott’s disaster declaration, which enables the federal government to provide aid to the Lone Star State.
• March 25: Austin issues a stay-at home order. Those who violate the order can be fined $1,000 or spend 180 days in jail, or both. 
• March 24: Harris County, which houses large swaths of Houston, issued a “stay at home, work safe” order similar to the one instituted in Dallas County. 
• March 22: Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins issues a “stay home, stay safe” order for the county. The order requires people to say in their homes as much as possible, with only essential businesses staying open. People are allowed to venture out to get groceries, perform essential work, get medicine, care for others, and get exercise. Takeout and delivery remain options for restaurants.
• March 19: Dr. John Hellerstedt, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services. The coronavirus “has created an immediate threat, poses a high risk of death to a large number of people, and creates a substantial risk of public exposure because of the disease’s method of transmission and evidence that there is community spread in Texas.” This is the first time in 119 years that the state has declared a public health disaster, the Houston Chronicle reported. 
• March 19: Abbott closes bars, restaurants and K-12 schools through April 3. The executive order also bans gatherings of more than 10 people.
• March 13: A man in his 90s from MAtagorda County becomes the state’s first known death from COVID-19. 
• March 4: The first reported case of COVID-19 occurs in Texas, in a man in his 70s from Fort Bend County, who had recently traveled abroad. 

Cases by county:

County Name	Population	Cases 05-05
Anderson	62,245	34
Andrews	17,487	21
Angelina	94,245	79
Aransas	26,041	2
Archer	9,847	0
Armstrong	1,970	2
Atascosa	55,946	19
Austin	36,542	13
Bailey	8,426	1
Bandera	25,100	6
Bastrop	100,746	98
Baylor	3,715	0
Bee	33,428	6
Bell	394,509	210
Bexar	2,062,088	1,652
Blanco	13,018	6
Borden	698	0
Bosque	20,522	5
Bowie	95,118	79
Brazoria	410,571	566
Brazos	239,527	209
Brewster	10,226	1
Briscoe	1,672	1
Brooks	7,619	1
Brown	40,617	38
Burleson	19,763	14
Burnet	52,456	24
Caldwell	49,202	23
Calhoun	25,263	34
Callahan	14,768	2
Cameron	493,571	443
Camp	14,442	7
Carson	6,526	3
Cass	32,050	16
Castro	8,901	18
Chambers	47,621	45
Cherokee	57,663	19
Childress	7,460	1
Clay	11,655	3
Cochran	3,458	1
Coke	3,095	1
Coleman	9,274	1
Collin	1,150,398	804
Collingsworth	3,243	1
Colorado	22,688	10
Comal	150,366	58
Comanche	14,855	3
Concho	4,299	1
Cooke	41,744	9
Coryell	86,638	180
Cottle	1,578	3
Crane	5,349	2
Crockett	4,082	0
Crosby	7,247	2
Culberson	2,722	0
Dallam	8,054	10
Dallas	2,639,966	4,370
Dawson	14,756	29
Deaf Smith	22,599	38
Delta	5,805	1
Denton	943,020	806
DeWitt	20,937	15
Dickens	2,482	1
Dimmit	10,870	1
Donley	3,873	25
Duval	12,596	3
Eastland	19,857	3
Ector	159,521	84
Edwards	2,174	0
Ellis	200,285	176
El Paso	952,366	1,029
Erath	41,649	12
Falls	19,236	6
Fannin	37,727	20
Fayette	28,422	17
Fisher	3,913	0
Floyd	6,688	4
Foard	1,365	0
Fort Bend	888,595	1,187
Franklin	11,838	2
Freestone	21,997	7
Frio	20,080	10
Gaines	21,681	3
Galveston	335,006	648
Garza	6,969	3
Gillespie	29,929	4
Glasscock	1,351	1
Goliad	8,518	7
Gonzales	22,345	31
Gray	24,928	68
Grayson	133,647	53
Gregg	136,671	97
Grimes	30,863	22
Guadalupe	182,526	87
Hale	38,415	29
Hall	3,320	0
Hamilton	8,802	5
Hansford	6,513	11
Hardeman	4,456	0
Hardin	62,163	112
Harris	4,885,616	6,967
Harrison	72,253	149
Hartley	6,321	7
Haskell	6,072	0
Hays	246,119	176
Hemphill	4,389	1
Henderson	84,178	32
Hidalgo	1,005,539	353
Hill	39,349	18
Hockley	24,916	20
Hood	61,274	19
Hopkins	38,504	6
Houston	25,147	8
Howard	37,715	5
Hudspeth	3,981	0
Hunt	101,894	52
Hutchinson	22,540	19
Irion	1,712	0
Jack	9,689	4
Jackson	14,356	14
Jasper	37,167	18
Jeff Davis	2,478	0
Jefferson	268,231	333
Jim Hogg	5,735	3
Jim Wells	44,487	5
Johnson	186,847	87
Jones	22,286	78
Karnes	16,265	3
Kaufman	149,063	96
Kendall	44,958	17
Kenedy	462	0
Kent	809	0
Kerr	57,004	5
Kimble	5,052	0
King	299	0
Kinney	3,816	0
Kleberg	35,499	10
Knox	3,762	1
Lamar	53,136	69
Lamb	14,620	4
Lampasas	23,399	5
La Salle	8,210	1
Lavaca	19,830	6
Lee	19,104	2
Leon	19,495	7
Liberty	90,780	46
Limestone	26,085	13
Lipscomb	3,797	2
Live Oak	11,854	5
Llano	21,407	3
Loving	81	0
Lubbock	313,938	560
Lynn	6,239	5
McCulloch	9,040	3
McLennan	255,521	91
McMullen	771	0
Madison	15,654	1
Marion	11,384	15
Martin	5,606	3
Mason	4,211	26
Matagorda	39,696	62
Maverick	63,502	26
Medina	56,907	20
Menard	2,406	0
Midland	159,256	90
Milam	26,786	18
Mills	5,240	0
Mitchell	10,050	1
Montague	21,462	8
Montgomery	660,481	640
Moore	25,817	434
Morris	13,917	9
Motley	1,196	1
Nacogdoches	73,458	187
Navarro	55,437	31
Newton	14,314	2
Nolan	16,176	2
Nueces	376,623	113
Ochiltree	12,755	25
Oldham	2,233	3
Orange	88,026	77
Palo Pinto	31,708	8
Panola	25,965	135
Parker	159,119	40
Parmer	12,385	13
Pecos	17,026	13
Polk	51,908	30
Potter	134,475	876
Presidio	8,683	0
Rains	13,134	2
Randall	142,109	296
Reagan	3,908	0
Real	3,439	0
Red River	13,468	1
Reeves	14,934	0
Refugio	7,514	1
Roberts	994	2
Robertson	19,553	4
Rockwall	115,985	91
Runnels	11,010	2
Rusk	63,351	38
Sabine	12,186	1
San Augustine	9,340	19
San Jacinto	32,428	10
San Patricio	68,331	13
San Saba	6,482	0
Schleicher	3,920	0
Scurry	18,906	2
Shackelford	3,734	0
Shelby	28,649	129
Sherman	3,440	18
Smith	243,064	155
Somervell	10,480	0
Starr	68,878	10
Stephens	10,297	1
Sterling	1,214	0
Stonewall	1,515	0
Sutton	4,651	0
Swisher	8,230	10
Tarrant	2,127,850	2,624
Taylor	138,279	356
Terrell	1,047	0
Terry	13,323	12
Throckmorton	1,639	0
Titus	37,790	21
Tom Green	114,995	56
Travis	1,277,007	1,816
Trinity	16,618	9
Tyler	22,646	7
Upshur	45,120	15
Upton	3,886	0
Uvalde	28,593	6
Val Verde	53,256	13
Van Zandt	58,259	16
Victoria	92,845	143
Walker	72,778	293
Waller	58,002	33
Ward	11,213	0
Washington	37,673	147
Webb	317,733	396
Wharton	43,271	40
Wheeler	5,934	11
Wichita	133,363	68
Wilbarger	14,897	1
Willacy	26,817	13
Williamson	633,783	328
Wilson	57,292	34
Winkler	8,371	3
Wise	74,490	27
Wood	48,594	11
Yoakum	9,591	2
Young	19,914	4
Zapata	17,043	7
Zavala	12,895	1
Total	30,541,978	33,369

Cases by age

Demographic data comes from completed case investigations by local and regional health departments received by Texas’ Department of State Health Services.

Age Groupings	Number	%
<1 year	32	0.3%
1-9 years	118	1.0%
10-19 years	334	2.9%
20-29 years	1,766	15.4%
30-39 years	2,073	18.1%
40-49 years	2,174	19.0%
50-59 years	2,113	18.5%
60-64 years	880	7.7%
65-69 years	631	5.5%
70-74 years	448	3.9%
75-79 years	299	2.6%
80+ years	538	4.7%
Unknown	41	0.4%
Total	11,447	100.0%

Originally published on Live Science.

Sourse: www.livescience.com