On Tuesday, Dallas County health officials reported 20 more COVID-19-related deaths, which coincide with most deaths the county has recorded in a single day since the start of the pandemic and that the number of victims Countywide it was 477.
The Dallas County Department of Health and Human Services also reported 20 coronavirus-related deaths on June 30.
Of the deaths, 16 were reported in Dallas, two in Duncanville and one in Cedar Hill and Grand Prairie.
DCHSS reported 1,000 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the county total to 35,914. Tuesday marked the twelfth consecutive day that Dallas County has seen at least 1,000 cases.
The 7-day average for new cases is now 1,112 cases per day, up from an average of 306 per day on June 14. Tuesday was the first day that the 7-day average decreased by more than one case per day since June 24.
In the past week, Dallas County has added 7,783 new cases of the virus.
Dallas County does not report COVID-19 recoveries because it lacks the manpower to keep up with thousands of patients, however, the Texas Department of State Health Services publishes an estimated number of recoveries on its site and lists 18,385 for Dallas County through Tuesday, July 14. Using data provided by the county and the state, there are an estimated 17,052 active COVID-19 cases in the county.
“Unfortunately, today we are reporting the deaths of 20 more of our county’s residents, and with another day of 1,000 cases, we continue to see a significant spread in Dallas County,” Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a statement. . “Our hospitals and healthcare heroes are feeling the strain as COVID-19 hospitalizations remain high.”
The increase in cases occurs when the state’s positivity rate, the percentage of people who test positive for the virus, has remained above 10% for nearly three weeks and rose to a new high above 16% on Saturday. An increase in the positivity rate indicates an increase in the spread of the virus, not an increase in tests to detect the virus.
County officials said half of the new cases reported since June 1 have been young adults ages 18 to 39.
To date, of the cases requiring hospitalization that reported employment, more than 80% have been critical infrastructure workers, with a wide range of occupational sectors affected, including health care, transportation, food and agriculture, public works, finance, communications, clergy, lifeguards and other essential functions.
Of the cases requiring hospitalization, two-thirds have been under the age of 65 and about half have no high-risk chronic conditions. Diabetes has been a reported high-risk underlying health condition in approximately one third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
The county has been reporting for several weeks that more than a third of COVID-19 related deaths have been residents of long-term care facilities.
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