Dallas County adds 10 COVID-19 deaths, 570 cases; Jenkins says data still skewed by winter storm

Dallas County reported 10 more COVID-19 deaths and 570 new coronavirus cases Saturday.

Of the latest victims, five were from Dallas, including a man in his 90s who died in a long-term care facility and did not have underlying health conditions. Two victims lived in Cedar Hill, and one each was from DeSoto, Grand Prairie and Mesquite.

Two of the victims were in their 50s, while the rest were older. Most had been hospitalized.

County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a written statement that the last week’s COVID-19 data was “significantly impacted” by reduced testing and other weather-related disruptions.

“Next week we should have a better handle on our actual numbers,” Jenkins said. “I am hopeful that based on the number of hospitalizations that we have seen this week, our numbers of new COVID-positive cases are continuing to trend down. Now is not a time to lose our resolve.”

Of the new cases, 416 were confirmed and 154 were probable. The numbers bring the county’s overall case total to 280,404 — 245,278 confirmed and 35,126 probable. The death toll is 2,951.

Health officials use hospitalizations, intensive-care admissions and emergency room visits as key metrics to track the real-time impact of COVID-19 in the county. In the 24-hour period that ended Friday, 460 COVID-19 patients were in acute care in hospitals in the county. During the same period, 382 ER visits were for symptoms of the disease.

In its most recent model, UT Southwestern Medical Center projects that the county will see between 350 and 530 hospitalizations a day and about 700 new cases a day by March 9, according to a county news release. The model also predicts an increasing number of patients in intensive care.

According to the state, 275,856 people have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine in Dallas County, while 142,740 are fully vaccinated.

Texas

Across the state, 11,093 more COVID-19 cases were reported Saturday — 8,103 new cases and 2,990 older ones recently reported by labs.

The state also reported 164 COVID-19 deaths, raising its toll to 42,739.

Of the new cases, 5,687 were confirmed and 2,416 were probable. Of the older cases, 2,886 were confirmed and 104 were probable.

The state’s case total is now 2,640,209 — 2,284,059 confirmed and 356,150 probable.

There are 5,912 COVID-19 patients in Texas hospitals, including 1,506 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. On Friday, 9% of patients in the hospital region covering the Dallas-Fort Worth area were COVID-19 patients — below the 15% threshold the state has used to define high hospitalizations.

The seven-day average positivity rate statewide for molecular tests, based on the date of test specimen collection, was 11.15% as of Friday. For antigen tests, the positivity rate for the same period was 4.36%. A molecular test is considered more accurate and is sometimes also called a PCR test; an antigen test is also called a rapid test. Gov. Greg Abbott has said a positivity rate above 10% is cause for concern.

According to the state, 3,405,368 people in Texas have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 1,728,116 are fully vaccinated.

Tarrant County

Tarrant County reported 645 coronavirus cases and 13 deaths Saturday.

The latest victims were five people from Fort Worth, four from Arlington and one each from Euless, Mansfield, River Oaks and White Settlement. Three were in their 40s and 50s; the others were older. All had underlying health conditions.

Of the new cases, 470 were confirmed and 175 were probable. The numbers bring the county’s case total to 241,650 — 205,676 confirmed and 35,974 probable. The death toll is 2,854.

According to the county, 489 people were hospitalized with the virus as of Friday.

According to the state, 212,624 people in Tarrant County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 136,953 are fully vaccinated.

Collin County

The state added 252 coronavirus cases and three deaths to Collin County’s totals Saturday.

No details about the latest victims were available.

Of the new cases, 175 were confirmed and 77 probable. The numbers bring the county’s case total to 83,100 — 69,920 confirmed and 13,180 probable. The death toll is 719.

According to the county, 276 people are hospitalized with the virus.

According to the state, 133,100 people in Collin County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 60,436 are fully vaccinated.

Denton County

Denton County reported 346 coronavirus cases and nine deaths Saturday.

Of the latest victims, eight were 60 or older. Three lived in Denton, two in Carrollton and one each in Fort Worth, Justin, Little Elm and an unincorporated area. Two were residents of long-term care facilities.

The newly reported cases bring the county’s case total to 63,994 — 48,806 confirmed and 15,188 probable. The death toll is 407.

According to the county, 112 people were hospitalized with the virus as of Friday.

According to the state, 96,179 people in Denton County have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, while 36,275 are fully vaccinated.

Other counties

The Texas Department of State Health Services has taken over reporting for these other North Texas counties. In some counties, new data may not be reported every day.

The latest numbers are:

• Rockwall County: 10,545 cases (8,700 confirmed and 1,845 probable), 124 deaths.
• Kaufman County: 14,760 cases (12,604 confirmed and 2,156 probable), 216 deaths.
• Ellis County: 20,714 cases (17,943 confirmed and 2,771 probable), 274 deaths.
• Johnson County: 18,518 cases (16,030 confirmed and 2,488 probable), 318 deaths.