Hays County reports 38 COVID-19 recoveries, 20 new cases

The Hays County Local Health Department reported 38 additional COVID-19 recoveries and 20 new lab-confirmed cases on Thursday. 

There are currently 2,829 active coronavirus cases — 18 less than Wednesday — and there have been 4,989 total cases since the first diagnosis of the virus within the county on March 14. 

With the 38 additional recoveries, there have now been 2,126 county residents who have recovered from the disease. 

According to the local health department, there are currently 16 county residents hospitalized by the coronavirus and there have been 117 total hospitalizations. County Epidemiologist Eric Schneider stated that some patients hospitalized by COVID-19 are in hospitals outside of Hays County but are included in the county’s numbers if they reside within the county.

Hays County has reported 34 total coronavirus-related fatalities since the first confirmed case was diagnosed within its boundaries. 

The local health department has received 22,041 negative tests and is awaiting results from 36 tests.

“We want to thank the Hays County residents who are helping us slow the spread of the virus,” Schneider said in a statement. “Now is not the time to relax our efforts. To continue seeing fewer new cases, everyone needs to keep washing their hands, wearing masks and staying distanced from others. If you don’t need to go out, it’s a good idea to stay home.”

San Marcos has tallied the most coronavirus cases in the county but continues to see a decrease in active cases with 25 less cases than Wednesday. The city currently has 1,349 active cases and has had 2,472 total cases.

Kyle now has 924 active cases and has had 1,542 total. Buda has recorded 665 total cases and currently has 378 active cases. Wimberley has tallied 83 total cases, including 33 active cases. Dripping Springs has amassed 80 total cases and has 66 active cases. Austin, within Hays County, currently has 27 active cases and has had 43 total cases. Driftwood has recorded 32 total cases and has 30 active cases. Niederwald has had 30 total cases, including one active case. Uhland has had 15 total cases and has 10 active cases. 

Maxwell has had nine total cases, including three active cases. Manchaca has had eight total cases and two active cases. Mountain City has had eight total cases and has five active cases. Bear Creek and Woodcreek each have had one total case.

The 20-29-age-range has recorded the most COVID-19 cases with 1,990. Eight-hundred-forty-five county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 30-39 years old. Six-hundred-nine people diagnosed with the coronavirus are 40-49 years old. Four-hundred-sixty-one residents fall in the 50-59-year-old age range. Four-hundred-thirteen county residents diagnosed with COVID-19 are between 10-19 years old, 277 are 60-69 years old, 169 are 9 years old or younger, 152 are 70-79 years old and 73 are 80 and older.

According to the local health department, 2,611 females and 2,378 males in Hays County have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

The county’s ethnic breakdown states that 44.1% of county residents diagnosed with the disease don’t have a specified ethnicity, while 38.1% are Hispanic and 17.8% are non-Hispanic. 

By race, 60.4% of county residents who’ve had COVID-19 are white, 37.2% are unknown or not specified, 1.9% are Black and 0.5% are Asian. 

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported 7,598 new cases and 306 fatalities on Thursday. The DSHS states that there have now been 467,485 Texans diagnosed with the coronavirus, there have been 7,803 fatalities and there are 8,302 Texans currently hospitalized by the virus. An estimated 323,804 Texans have recovered from the coronavirus, according to the DSHS.

COVID-19 causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks for most people. The disease, however, can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death, especially for older adults and people with existing health problems.