4 Hays County residents die of COVID-19; 150 new cases tallied Monday

Four Hays County residents recently died of COVID-19, the Hays County Local Health Department reported Monday. 

A Buda woman in her 90s; a San Marcos woman in her 70s; a Kyle man in his 60s; and an Austin man in his 60s were among those who died from the coronavirus. Hays County has recorded 483 COVID-19-related fatalities since the pandemic’s onset. 

The local health department also tallied an additional 444 recoveries, 150 lab-confirmed cases and three hospital discharges on Monday, which included information from Feb. 26-28. 

The county considers 1,974 cases active — 298 fewer than reported Friday — and there have been 52,650 total cases since the first diagnosis of the virus within its boundaries on March 14, 2020. There have been 6,880 probable cases spanning from April 2020 through Feb. 28, 2022.

Seven county residents are currently hospitalized by COVID-19 — four who are vaccinated and seven who are unvaccinated — according to the local health department. The county stated that of the four residents hospitalized who are vaccinated, two are in the ICU and not on a ventilator, one is in the ICU on a ventilator and one is a non-ICU patient. Additionally, two of the three residents who are hospitalized and unvaccinated are currently non-ICU patients and  one is in the ICU and not on a ventilator. There have been 1,660 total hospitalizations as of Monday.

The county has tallied 50,193 county residents who’ve recovered from the coronavirus with the 483 additional recoveries tallied Monday.

The local health department has received 357,701 negative tests and there have been 410,351 tests administered in the county. The positivity rate for Monday’s report was approximately 7.87%

As the pandemic continues, the local health department stresses the importance of taking precautions to limit the spread, including frequent hand washing, social distancing and wearing a mask indoors around large groups of people. The local health department now accepts at-home COVID-19 test results to be uploaded online at https://arcg.is/1G4P1r. The county said all information remains confidential and no identifying information is collected. Additionally, at-home test results reported won’t be included in the official case count but will provide “a better understanding of community spread,” the county added.  

San Marcos has 398 active cases — 63 fewer than recorded Friday  — and there have been 16,727 total cases as of Monday.

Kyle has recorded 17,267 total cases, including 775 active cases. Buda has tallied 10,190 total cases and currently has 383 active cases. Wimberley has counted 2,911 total cases, including 63 active cases. Dripping Springs has amassed 2,443 total cases and has 187 active cases. Austin, within Hays County, has had 1,500 total cases and has 88 active cases. Driftwood has recorded 757 total cases with 35 cases considered active. Niederwald has had 244 total cases including 12 active cases. Maxwell has had 220 total cases. Mountain City has amassed 133 total cases and has seven active cases. Uhland has had 130 total cases with 11 considered active. Manchaca has recorded 96 total cases and 13 active cases. Woodcreek has recorded 18 total cases with one currently active case

Bear Creek has amassed nine total cases with one active case. Hays has reported four total cases. Creedmoor has recorded one total case. 

The 20-29-age-range has recorded the most COVID-19 cases with 12,668 total cases tallied as of Monday. There are currently 310 active cases among 20-29 year olds in Hays County.

According to the local health department, 8,596 county residents who’ve contracted COVID-19 have been between 10-19 years old, including 344 cases considered active; 8,575 county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 30-39 years old with 278 with active cases; 7,305 people fall in the 40-49-year-old age range with 267 cases considered active; 4,874 are between 50-59 years old, including 192 active cases; 5,090 are 9 years old or younger with 372 cases considered active; and 3,232 county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are 60-69 years old and 123 are considered active cases.

The local health department has tallied 1,577 Hays County residents who are 70-79 years old and have contracted COVID-19, including 60 active cases; and 733 cases among residents who are 80 and older with 28 cases currently active.

There have been 28,299 total coronavirus cases among females and 24,351 among males in Hays County. There are currently 1,083 active cases among females in the county and 891 active cases among males.

The county’s ethnic breakdown stated 47% of county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are Hispanic, while 38% of county residents diagnosed with the disease are non-Hispanic and 15% don’t have a specified ethnicity.

By race, 67.5% of county residents who’ve had COVID-19 are white, 20.5% are unknown or not specified, 6.5 % are listed as other, 3.6% are Black, 1.5% are Asian, 0.3% are American Indian and 0.1% are Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported an additional 2,227 lab-confirmed cases Monday. There have now been 5,432,512 Texans diagnosed with COVID-19 and 83,549 fatalities as of Monday. There are currently 3,684 Texans hospitalized by the coronavirus, according to the DSHS. The statewide positivity rate as of Monday is 4.97%.

At Texas State University there have been 4,313 coronavirus cases recorded since Aug. 1, 2021 — 3,609 among students and 704 among faculty and staff — at the time of publication. There are currently 114 active cases, according to the university’s dashboard.

VACCINE AVAILABILITY

In Hays County, “no appointment needed” vaccine clinics are available. Vaccines usually offered Monday-Friday at Christus Trinity Clinic (formerly Live Oak), 401 Broadway won’t be available until further notice, according to the Hays County Local Health Department. A walk-in Pfizer vaccine clinic takes place at Communicare in Kyle at 2810 Dacy Lane every Monday-Friday between 8-11 a.m. and 1-4 p.m.

COVID-19 vaccines are widely available in San Marcos at multiple CVS pharmacies, multiple Walgreens pharmacies, both H-E-B pharmacies, B&J Pharmacy, San Marcos Family Medicine and Sam’s Club Pharmacy. Visit https://www.vaccines.gov to see other locations across the county. Check with each location to see if an appointment is required or if walk-in is accepted.

According to the DSHS, 141,476 county residents are considered fully vaccinated — 65.71% of 215,309 eligible residents who are 5 years or older as of Monday. The DSHS stated that 165,829 Hays County residents have received at least one COVID-19 vaccination dose — 77.02% of eligible residents. Additionally, the DSHS stated that 55,049 Hays County citizens have received an additional vaccine dose as of Monday.