Dallas County Health and Human Services reported one death, and 259 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19, today, Sep. 11.  The total case count in Dallas County is 74,887 with 965 total deaths to date.

The total number of probable cases in Dallas County is 3,404, including 10 probable deaths from COVID-19.

The total new cases today include 109 from Texas Department of State Health Services in July (23), August (41) and September (45).

The additional death being reported today was a 78-year-old woman who was a resident of the Sunnyvale. She had been critically ill in an area hospital 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 36 was 243, slightly increased from the previous CDC week 35’s daily average of 295. The percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 remains high with 10.8% of symptomatic patients presenting to area hospitals testing positive in week 36.

A provisional total of 104 confirmed and probable COVID-19 cases were diagnosed in school-aged children (5 to 17 years) during CDC week 36 (week ending 9/5//2020), a continued increased trend from the previous two weeks for this age group. Over the past 2 weeks, 31 cases of COVID-19 have been reported associated with multiple youth hockey teams in the DFW area, including 5 coaches. One 29-year old hockey coach was reported to have had COVID-19 at the time of his death last week in an adjacent county.

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. New cases are being reported as a daily aggregate, with a more detailed summary report updated Tuesdays and Fridays.

Local health experts use hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and ER visits as three of the key indicators in determining the COVID-19 Risk Level (color-coded risk) and corresponding guidelines for activities during our COVID-19 response. There were 332 COVID-19 patients in acute care in Dallas County for the period ending on Thursday, September 10. The number of emergency room visits for COVID-19 like symptoms in Dallas County was 391 for the 24-hour period ending on Thursday, September 10, 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. 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.

“Today we’re reporting another 259 total new cases, 195 of which are from the month of September. We have 64 cases from previous months from the state’s electronic laboratory reporting system. Also today we report an additional death. Our numbers on the charts above show a decline in cases for the week ending September 5th and the percent positivity rate for that week remaining the same. Also the number of students that were positive was down for the week of September 5th. There are concerning numbers in that the R naught has gone up as well as we’ve seen an increase in some other metrics and the Public Health Committee is meeting today to look at these factors and ascertain any root causes and information that may be helpful in controlling the spread.

Today is September 11th and is a day that reminds us of the great sacrifice of many to protect freedom. If those who have gone before us can do great acts of heroism, we can do simple acts of kindness and consideration to protect our fellow resident from COVID-19 to keep our businesses strong and to get more of our kids back into school sooner. So please wear your mask and maintain six-foot distance, wash your hands frequently, avoid unnecessary trips, and stay away from indoor crowds where people are not wearing their mask one hundred percent of the time,” said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.

From Staff Reports • [email protected]