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: 250 new cases were reported Wednesday, bringing the total number for the county to 46,913. The county death toll, meanwhile, rose to 835 after 13 additiona
lfatalities were reported. - Comal County: The county reported 19 additional cases and no additional deaths Wednesday. There have been a total of 3,024 cases of COVID-19 in the county – including 2,395 confirmed cases – while 87 county residents have died. County officials say there are 386 active coronavirus cases, and 2,551 residents are considered recovered.
- Hays County: Officials in Hays County on Wednesday reported 15 new cases in the county and two additional virus-related deaths. As of Wednesday, there are a total of 5,425 lab-confirmed cases in the county (2,117 of which are active) while the death toll increased to 50. 3,258 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 Wednesday, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg reported 250 new COVID-19 cases in Bexar County. It marks the second straight day of at least 222 new cases in the metro, pushing the seven-day moving daily case total average up slightly to 184. In all, 46,913 residents in the county have been infected with the virus.
Nirenberg also reported 13 additional virus-related deaths stretching back to July 14. 835 Bexar County residents have lost their lives to the virus in the ongoing pandemic.
Hospitalizations dipped slightly for Bexar County on Wednesday, to 356. The number of COVID-19 patients utilizing ventilators stayed pat at 93, while the number of patients in intensive care increased slightly to 164.
Meanwhile, amid news that the Centers for Disease Control is telling states to prepare for COVID-19 vaccine distribution in November, Metro Health Assistant Medical Director Sandra Guerro confirmed that the city has received guidance on the priority order for vaccine recipients ahead of eventual distribution.
But she said Metro Health won't distribute those vaccines until they're ready.
"At the end of the day, as a clinician and as a public health professional, we not only want a vaccine to be available, we want it to be safe," Guerro said. "We want it to be effective."
Coronavirus in Texas
The Texas Department of State Health Services on Wednesday reported an additional 4,334 cases of the novel coronavirus across the state, 177 of which are from backlog investigations.
As of Tuesday, at least 621,667 Texans have been infected with COVID-19.
Meanwhile, the state also reported an additional 189 coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday, raising the death toll to 12,870.
Texas hospitalizations increased slightly on Wednesday. The number of residents receiving treatment for COVID-19 symptoms is up to 4,149, a difference of just five patients over Tuesday's numbers. The number of Texans who have recovered from coronavirus passed 500,000 this week, and reached 522,087 on Wednesday.
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.
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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.