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Hays County reports 53 COVID-19 recoveries, 21 new cases Friday

Fri, 07/31/2020 - 5:36pm

Friday, July 31, 2020

The Hays County Local Health Department reported 53 new COVID-19 recoveries, 21 additional cases, three hospitalizations and one hospital discharge on Friday.

There are now 2,861 active cases — a 35-case decrease since Thursday — and there have been 4,315 total cases since the first diagnosis of the virus within the county on March 14.

With the additional three hospitalizations and one hospital discharge, there are currently 25 county residents hospitalized by the coronavirus and there have been 105 total hospitalizations. According to county Epidemiologist Eric Schneider, 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.

According to the local health department, 1,426 county residents have now recovered from the disease with the 53 new recoveries announced Friday.

Hays County has had 28 fatalities reported since the first diagnosis of the virus within its boundaries.

The local health department has received 21,521 negative COVID-19 tests and is awaiting results from 42 tests.

“Today’s numbers may look encouraging, but the COVID-19 pandemic is not over,” Schneider said. “It’s still critical that everyone in Hays County is working together to slow the spread. Wash your hands, wear a mask and stay distanced from others. Avoiding large groups and get togethers is also a key method for slowing down this virus.”

San Marcos has tallied the most coronavirus cases in the county but continues to see a decrease in active cases with 18 less cases than Thursday. The city currently has 1,409 active cases and has had 2,178 total cases.

Kyle now has 888 active cases and has had 1,293 total. Buda has recorded 581 total cases and currently has 389 active cases. Dripping Springs has amassed 77 total cases and has 64 active cases. Wimberley has tallied 69 total cases, including 37 active cases. Austin, within Hays County, currently has 26 active cases and has had 42 total cases. Driftwood has recorded 32 total cases and has 30 active cases. Niederwald has had 17 total cases and has one active case. Uhland has had 10 total cases and has nine active cases.

Maxwell has had six total cases, including three active cases. Mountain City has had five total cases and has two active cases. Manchaca has had three total cases and two 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 1,825. Seven-hundred-twenty-one county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 30-39 years old. Five-hundred-two people diagnosed with the disease are 40-49 years old. Three-hundred-eighty-five residents fall in the 50-59-year-old age range. Three-hundred-eighteen county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are between 10-19 years old, 235 are 60-69 years old, 141 are 9 years old or younger, 120 are 70-79 years old and 68 are 80 and older.

According to the local health department, 2,255 females and 2,060 males in Hays County have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

The county’s ethnic breakdown states that 41.8% of county residents diagnosed with the disease don’t have a specified ethnicity, while 40.4% are Hispanic and 17.8% are non-Hispanic.

By race, 49.4% of county residents who’ve had COVID-19 are white, 48.3% are unknown or not specified, 1.9% are Black and 0.4% are Asian.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported 8,839 new cases Friday. There have now been 420,946 Texans diagnosed with the coronavirus, there have been 6,569 fatalities and there are 9,336 Texans currently hospitalized by the virus.

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.