Dallas County Reports 323 New Coronavirus Cases, 7 Deaths On Day 'Risk Level' Lowered
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Dallas County Health and Human Services reported 358 additional COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total confirmed case count in Dallas County to 72,610.
The county also confirmed seven more deaths, bringing the total to 926.
The total number of probable cases in Dallas County is 3,025, including 10 probable deaths from COVID-19.
Of the 358 new cases reported Wednesday, 207 came through the Texas Department of State Health Services electronic laboratory reporting system and 35 were from months prior to August.
Earlier in the day, Dallas County moved its risk level for the virus down from red to orange, which loosens some recommendations on restrictions.
"According to the Public Health Committee, we have met the criteria to now move from the "Red" high-risk level into the "Orange" moderate-risk level. We had been in the "Red" risk-level since we announced the color-coded risk chart in May, and as we saw record numbers of cases and hospitalizations over the summer," said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins in a statement. "I know the move to the "Orange" level is because of the hard work of Dallas County residents who have worn their masks, maintained social distances and made sacrifices for the greater good. The Public Health Guidance document that shows what medical experts say you can safely do in the "Orange" level here."
From August 8th through 21st, 393 school-aged children between 5 to 18 years of age were diagnosed with COVID-19 in Dallas County. About 50% of these cases were high school age. By zip code of residence, 203 (51%) of these children were projected to have been enrolled in Dallas ISD schools
Of all confirmed cases requiring hospitalization to date, more than two-thirds have been under 65 years of age. Diabetes has been an underlying high-risk health condition reported in about a third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19.
The provisional 7-day average daily new confirmed and probable cases (by date of test collection) for CDC week 34 was 226. The percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 continues to decline but remains high, with 11.3% of symptomatic patients presenting to area hospitals testing positive in week 34.
Trending Lower: Number Of New Coronavirus Cases And Deaths Dropping In Texas
"With all activities, we should continue to wear our mask, maintain social distancing, and use good hand hygiene. I do want to remind high-risk individuals and those over the age of 65 to continue to exercise extreme caution in all of their outside activities as the loosened restrictions in "Orange" do not apply to the high-risk group," said Judge Jenkins.
The Public Health Committee is still asking residents to avoid large gatherings of more than 10 people including family events, gyms, movie theaters and other indoor entertainment settings, and team sports.
"This is especially important to remember as we head into Labor Day weekend and our last big holiday weekend of the summer. We saw a very significant increase in cases and hospitalizations following the Memorial Day holiday. It's taken us three months to recover from that spike. Our numbers can rise very quickly when we let our guard down. If that happens over Labor Day, we will be in the midst of the holiday season where we would like to safely celebrate with our loved ones. We must continue to exercise caution as this is a marathon. I'm confident we can do this and find ways to keep businesses open, get all of our kids back in school, and most importantly, keep more people from getting sick," said Judge Jenkins.
The seven new deaths reported Wednesday include:
- A man in his 50's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital, and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 60's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 60's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70's who was a resident of a long-term care facility in the City of Dallas. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 70's who was a resident of the City of Lancaster. She had been critically ill in an area hospital, and did not have underlying high risk health conditions.
- A man in his 80's who was a resident of the City of Richardson. He had been critically ill in an area hospital, and had underlying high risk health conditions.
- A woman in her 90's who was a resident of the City of DeSoto. She had been hospitalized, and had underlying high risk health conditions.