Reporting change reveals 22 additional COVID-19 deaths

The Hays County Local Health Department reported 71 recoveries from COVID-19, 66 new cases, four hospitalizations and two hospital discharges on Monday, which included information from the weekend.

There have been 86 coronavirus-related fatalities reported since the first diagnosis of the virus within the county, including 22 newly recorded deaths resulting from a change in the Texas Department of State Health Service’s reporting system on Friday.

The county stated that the new fatalities stem from enhanced reporting protocols from hospitals, funeral homes and nursing facilities. Those county residents who died were known to have been diagnosed with COVID-19, however, the Hays County Local Health department wasn’t properly notified of their deaths, the county said.

“The change is another enhancement in the state’s reporting system,” health department Director Tammy Crumley said. “We’ve seen continual improvement over the course of the pandemic in terms of reporting and data coding.”

There are currently 505 active coronavirus cases — five fewer than Friday — and there have been 6,353 total cases since the first diagnosis of the virus in Hays County on March 14. The county also reported that there have been 305 active cases over the last 21 days — a 25-case decrease since Friday.

The local health department states that there have been 773 probable cases spanning from April through October.

There are currently 11 county residents hospitalized by COVID-19 and there have been 370 total hospitalizations following fluctuation in hospitalizations and hospital discharges reported Monday. 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, the local health department said.

Hays County has now had 5,762 residents recover from the disease with the 71 new recoveries tallied Monday.

The local health department has received 34,569 negative tests and there have been 40,912 tests administered in Hays County.

San Marcos has seen the most coronavirus cases in the county but tallied less than 100 active cases on Monday. The city currently has 32 active cases — a four-case increase since Friday — and has had 3,132 total cases as of Monday.

Kyle now has 303 active cases and has had 1,896 total. Buda has recorded 877 total cases and currently has 103 active cases. Dripping Springs has amassed 118 total cases and has 31 active cases. Wimberley has tallied 117 total cases, including four active cases. Austin, within Hays County, currently has five active cases and has had 78 total cases. Driftwood has recorded 48 total cases and has 15 active cases. Niederwald has had 32 total cases and there is one active case. Uhland has had 21 total cases and one active case. Mountain City has had 13 total cases and has six active cases.

Manchaca has had nine total cases and has two active cases. Maxwell has had nine total cases. Bear Creek has one active case and has had two total cases. Woodcreek has had one total case.

The 20-29-age-range has recorded the most COVID-19 cases with 2,330 total cases tallied as of Monday.

According to the local health department, 1,032 county residents diagnosed with the disease are between 30-39 years old. Seven-hundred-forty-eight people diagnosed with the coronavirus are 40-49 years old. Seven-hundred-twenty-one residents fall in the 10-19-year-old age range. Five-hundred-ninety county residents diagnosed with COVID-19 are between 50-59 years old, 369 are 60-69 years old, 222 are 70-79 years old, 215 are 9 years old or younger and 126 are 80 and older.

According to the local health department, 3,315 females and 3,038 males in Hays County have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

The county’s ethnic breakdown states 43.46% of county residents diagnosed with the coronavirus are Hispanic, while 36.25% of county residents diagnosed with the disease don’t have a specified ethnicity and 20.29% are non-Hispanic.

By race, 62.9% of county residents who’ve had COVID-19 are white, 34.1% are unknown or not specified, 2.4% are Black and 0.6% are Asian.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported that there have now been 867,075 Texans diagnosed with COVID-19, 17,514 fatalities and an estimated 758,192 recoveries from the disease. There are currently 5,278 Texans hospitalized by 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.