Health officials in Dallas County on Saturday reported 1,920 additional cases of COVID-19 and 21 coronavirus-related deaths, ending its deadliest week since the start of the pandemic.
Of the cases reported Saturday, 1,525 were confirmed and 395 were probable, which means an antigen test confirmed the result. Since March, Dallas County Health and Human Services has reported 216,968 confirmed cases and 28,678 probable cases, or those confirmed by antigen tests.
The county ended the week with 138 deaths, the highest number since the start of the pandemic, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said.
"As we have said for weeks, January and February will be our darkest months. This week is our deadliest week thus far," Jenkins said in a written statement. "It is imperative that all of us make the small sacrifices to keep our community and our country strong in these difficult times. ...The decisions we make today will determine what the numbers will look like: new cases in two weeks and deaths in a month."
The 21 people whose deaths were reported Saturday included the following:
- A man in his 40’s who was a resident of Richardson. He was critically ill in an area hospital and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 40’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was found dead in her home and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 50’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was found dead in her home and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 50’s who was a resident of Dallas. He was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 50’s who was a resident of Wilmer. He was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 60’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 60’s who was a resident of Dallas. She had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 70’s who was a resident of Dallas. He was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of Mesquite. She was critically ill in an area hospital and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Dallas. She was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 80’s who was a resident of Garland. He had been hospitalized in an area hospital and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 80’s who was a resident of Dallas. She was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 80’s who was a resident of Farmers Branch. She was found dead in her home and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 80’s who was a resident of Dallas. He was critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 80’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Irving. She expired in the facility.
- A man in his 80’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Garland. He had been hospitalized and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 80’s who was a resident of Dallas. He had been hospitalized in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 90’s who was a resident of Dallas. She had been hospitalized in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 90’s who was a resident of a long-term care facility in Mesquite. She had been hospitalized in an area hospital and had underlying high risk health conditions.
Dallas County has reported 1,996 confirmed deaths related to the coronavirus.
Dallas County's provisional seven-day average of new cases, which uses the date of the test collection, for Week 2 was 1,814, a rate of 68.8 new cases per day per 100,000 residents.
The Texas Department of State Health Services has reported an estimated 201,929 recoveries for Dallas County as of Saturday, Jan. 23.
In Trauma Service Area "E," which accounts for the North Texas region, hospitalizations have continually decreased over the last 10 days from about 4,000 to 3,500.
“We’re cautiously optimistic," said Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council President and CEO Stephen Love.
Still, Love said it's too soon to call it a trend.
COVID patients currently account for one out of every four people hospitalized and nearly half of those in ICUs around the metroplex.
He said hospitals' chief medical officers, infectious disease physicians and critical care doctors are also carefully watching the U.K. variant, which is believed to be up to 70% more contagious.
Friday, Dallas County reported four known cases that weren't linked to international travel.
Love said hospital staff tell him it's likely more.
"They think that community spread of the variant virus is much more prolific than we think because they don't test every patient to see what kind of the virus they have," said Love.
Friday, the British Government announced there's now some evidence that the new variant's more deadly, despite earlier reports.
"Our fear is, as it continues to spread, we're going to have more cases, more hospitalizations and have a surge on top of the surge we're dealing with," said Love.
So though the vaccine's distribution means hope is on the horizon, Love's urging people to continue masking and practicing distancing in the months to come.
Jenkins urged people who wish to get the COVID-19 vaccine to register in as many places as they are willing to travel.
"With 340,000 on the list here in Dallas County, and the list growing every day, we will not be able to get to all the demand for some time," he said.
The county said it has administered 18,859 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Fair Park mega-vaccine hub since operations began Jan. 11, and Dallas County Health and Human Services is expecting another 9,000 doses from the state for the next week.
Last week, the county was working through an issue after people who received appointment confirmation emails shared the live appointment links with others, which led people to show up for a vaccine they had not correctly registered to get.
Jenkins said he hopes the health department will present a contract in the next week for a vendor to provide a more secure QR code appointment system to streamline the appointment process.
Want to Get on a Vaccine Waitlist?
County health departments have launched waitlists for adults 16 years old and over.
You can register to recieve the vaccination in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Tarrant counties. Links are below:
Waitlist Links: Collin - Search Waitlist | Dallas | Denton | Tarrant
You do not need to be a resident of the county to register for a COVID-19 vaccine in that county -- registration is open to anyone in Texas. For those without internet access, Tarrant County is also taking registrations by phone at 817-248-6299. In Dallas County, call the DCHHS vaccine hotline at 1-855-IMMUNE9 (1-855-466-8639). In Denton County, call 940-349-2585.
For a more detailed breakdown of who is included in each priority group in Texas, see this page from the Texas DSHS.
There have been 7,284 cases of COVID-19 in school-aged children and staff reported from 678 K-12 schools in the county in the last 30 days. Of those, 1,842 were reported in the last week of December.
According to the county, an outbreak at a school that began with spread among 11 staff members led to the transmission of COVID-19 to 10 students. From there, 13 members of the households of those students and staff became infected, one person died and one person was hospitalized.
There are also 111 active outbreaks in long-term care facilities. About 22% of all deaths have been associated with such facilities.
A total of 3,669 residents and 2,091 healthcare workers in those facilities have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Of those, 745 have been hospitalized and 402 have died, the county said.
In congregate living facilities, 27 outbreaks have been reported in the last 30 days. A total of 350 residents and 168 staff at those facilities have been diagnosed with COVID-19, according to the county.
Of all confirmed coronavirus cases requiring hospitalization, more than two-thirds have been under 65. Diabetes has been an underlying health condition in about one-third of all hospitalized patients.
