Kyle man dies of COVID-19; County records 193 new cases Wednesday

A Kyle man in his 70s recently died of COVID-19, marking Hays County’s 304th coronavirus-related fatality. 

The Hays County Local Health Department also reported 193 new lab-confirmed cases, 160 additional recoveries, five hospitalizations and two hospital discharges on Wednesday. 

The county considers 2,254 cases active — 32 more than Tuesday — and there have been 24,503 total cases since the first diagnosis of the virus within its boundaries on March 14, 2020. 
Hays County has tallied 3,189 COVID-19 cases over the past 21 days. There have been 2,741 probable cases spanning from April 2020 through Aug. 25, 2021.

Fifty-two county residents are currently hospitalized by COVID-19 — 41 who are unvaccinated and 11 who are fully vaccinated, according to the local health department. The county stated that of the 41 citizens hospitalized who are unvaccinated, 24 are in the ICU and on a ventilator, nine are in the ICU and not currently on a ventilator, eight are not in the ICU. Additionally, 10 of the county residents hospitalized who are vaccinated are not in the ICU, while one is in the ICU on a ventilator. There have been 1,145 total hospitalizations as of Wednesday.

There have been 21,945 county residents who’ve recovered from the coronavirus following the 160 recoveries tallied Wednesday.

The local health department has received 217,026 negative tests and there have been 241,529 tests administered in Hays County. The positivity rate for Wednesday's report was approximately 14.33%. 

The Texas Department of State Health Services has conducted random testing for positive cases of the Delta variant and there has been one confirmed positive Delta case detected in Hays County. The county, however, stated that the case is no longer considered active.

San Marcos recorded 79 new cases Wednesday. The city currently has 811 active cases — 46 more than Tuesday — and there have been 8,417 total cases. 

Kyle has recorded 7,998 total cases, including 787 active cases. Buda has tallied 4,426 total cases and currently has 347 active cases. Dripping Springs has amassed 1,205 total cases and has 87 active cases. Wimberley has counted 1,079 total cases, including 101 active cases. Austin, within Hays County, has had 702 total cases and has 59 active cases. Driftwood has recorded 334 total cases with 39 cases considered active. Niederwald has had 117 total cases, including eight active cases. Mountain City has amassed 67 total cases with eight currently considered active. Maxwell has had 56 total cases with one active case. Uhland has had 42 total cases and has one active case. Manchaca has recorded 30 total cases with one currently considered active.

Woodcreek has recorded 12 total. Creedmoor has recorded eight total cases, including two active cases. Bear Creek has amassed seven total cases with two cases considered active. Hays has reported three total cases.

The 20-29-age-range has recorded the most COVID-19 cases with 6,629 total cases tallied as of Wednesday. There are currently 521 active cases among 20-29 year olds in Hays County.

According to the local health department, 3,865 county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 30-39 years old with 387 with active cases; 3,853 county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 10-19 years old, including 413 cases considered active; 3,338 people fall in the 40-49-year-old age range with 312 cases considered active; 2,373 are between 50-59 years old, including 191 active cases; 1,788 are 9 years old or younger with 221 cases considered active; and 1,522 county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are 60-69 years old and 140 are considered active cases.

Seven-hundred-thirty-one Hays County residents who've contracted COVID-19 are 70-79 years old, including 50 active cases; and 404 are 80 and older with 23 cases currently active.

The local health department reported that 12,733 females and 11,770 males in Hays County have been diagnosed with COVID-19. There are currently 1,153 active cases among males in the county and there are 1,101 active cases among females. 

The county’s ethnic breakdown stated 49.6% of county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are Hispanic, while 35.9% of county residents diagnosed with the disease are non-Hispanic and 14.5% don’t have a specified ethnicity.

By race, 69.3% of county residents who’ve had COVID-19 are white, 25.5% are unknown or not specified, 3.1% are Black, 1% are listed as other, 1% are Asian and 0.1% are American Indian.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported an additional 18,826 lab-confirmed cases Wednesday. There have now been 2,948,801 Texans diagnosed with COVID-19 and 54,455 fatalities as of Wednesday. There are currently 13,928 Texans hospitalized by the coronavirus, according to the DSHS. The statewide positivity rate as of Wednesday is 15.64%.

At Texas State University there have been 309 coronavirus cases recorded since Aug. 1 — 258 among students and 51 among faculty and staff — at the time of publication. There are currently 188 active cases, according to the university’s dashboard.

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.

COVID-19 VACCINE SIGNUP

To make an appointment for a vaccine shot, visit https://www.haysinformed.com. From there you can use the new online scheduler to find a time and location that works best for you. According to the DSHS, 113,185 Hays County residents have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Monday, approximately 57.75% of 195,999 eligible residents who are 12 years or older. Additionally, 136,502 county residents have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose — 69.64% of the eligible population.

“No appointment needed” vaccine clinics are available Monday-Monday at Live Oak Community Clinic, 401 Broadway, in San Marcos between 8:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-4:30 p.m. Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available at this clinic. 

A walk-in Pfizer vaccine clinic takes place at Communicare in Kyle at 2810 Dacy Lane every Monday-Monday between 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and 1-3 p.m.

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