SAN ANTONIO — We're tracking the latest numbers from the coronavirus pandemic in San Antonio and across Texas. Here are the latest numbers reported by Bexar and surrounding counties:
- Bexar County: 222 new cases were reported Tuesday, bringing the total number for the county to 46,663. The county death toll, meanwhile, rose to 822 after 13 additiona
lfatalities were reported. - Comal County: The county reported 36 additional cases and no additional deaths Tuesday. There have been a total of 3,005 cases of COVID-19 in the county – including 2,382 confirmed cases – while 87 county residents have died. County officials say there are 441 active coronavirus cases, and 2,477 residents are considered recovered.
- Hays County: Officials in Hays County on Tuesday reported 14 new cases in the county and one new death. As of Monday, there are a total of 5,410 lab-confirmed cases in the county (2,224 of which are active) while the death toll increased to 48. 3,138 are considered recovered.
How Bexar County is trending
We've tracked how many coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Bexar County from the time officials began reporting cases in March 2020. The graphic below shows the number of cases since June and charts those daily case numbers along a 7-day moving average to provide a more accurate picture of the overall coronavirus case curve in our area and the direction we're trending amid the pandemic.
On Tuesday, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg reported 222 additional cases of the novel coronavirus. The development raises the county total to 46,663 cases since the pandemic began.
He also reported 13 additional coronavirus-related deaths. In all, 822 Bexar County residents have lost their lives from coronavirus-related complications.
Hospitalizations for the county dropped by 20 to 366. The number of Bexar County COVID-19 patients on ventilators (93) fell slightly, and the number of patients in intensive care (157) rose a bit from Monday.
Mayor Nirenberg said the positivity rate improved again this week to 7.8%, but that's still higher than the 5% they'd like for it to be at to resume full in-person schooling.
He said that the doubling rate has increased to 65 days.
"We're no longer seeing an exponential spread of COVID-19," Nirenberg said.
He said that the 14-day case curve shows a steady decline, but they want to see a steady decline without a rebound in cases.
He said that the school risk level is moderate. This will allow for in-person instruction for no more than six students in a pod, wearing masks and physically distancing, and limiting room and building occupancy to 25%.
Coronavirus in Texas
The Texas Department of State Health Services on Tuesday reported an additional 4,116 cases of the novel coronavirus across the state, 248 of which are from backlog investigations.
As of Tuesday, at least 617,354 Texans have been infected with COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the state also reported an additional 145 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday, raising the death toll to 12,681.
Texas hospitalizations dropped once again on Tuesday. The number of residents receiving treatment for COVID-19 symptoms increased slightly to 4,144, the lowest level since June 23. The number of Texans who have recovered from coronavirus passed 500,000 on Monday, and reached 514,861 on Tuesday.
As the school year begins to get underway for local districts, we are also keeping track of the most important updates for each, including links to dashboards created to track coronavirus cases.
Latest Coronavirus Headlines
- COVID-19 antibodies last at least 4 months, extensive study finds
- Texas coronavirus hospitalizations are at a two-month low, but school reopenings pose new risks
- San Antonio ISD to delay athletics until October 5
- White House public tours to resume Sept. 12 with COVID-19 rules
- Uber to require that passengers provide face-mask selfies
- San Antonio launches coronavirus workforce recovery program
- GM, Ford complete US contracts to build thousands of ventilators
Coronavirus symptoms
The symptoms of coronavirus can be similar to the flu or a bad cold. Symptoms include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting and diarrhea, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Most healthy people will have mild symptoms. A study of more than 72,000 patients by the Centers for Disease Control in China showed 80 percent of the cases there were mild.
But infections can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure, and even death, according to the World Health Organization. Older people with underlying health conditions are most at risk.
On June 25, the CDC expanded the list of groups at a higher risk of severe illness due to coronavirus.
Experts determined there was consistent evidence these conditions increase a person's risk, regardless of age:
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Obesity (BMI of 30 or higher)
- Immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant
- Serious heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes
The CDC believes symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 14 days after being exposed.
Human coronaviruses are usually spread...
- Between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet).
- Through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.
- Some recent studies have suggested that COVID-19 may be spread by people who are not showing symptoms.
Help stop the spread of coronavirus
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Eat and sleep separately from your family members
- Use different utensils and dishes
- Cover your cough or sneeze with your arm, not your hand.
- If you use a tissue, throw it in the trash.