Falls County COVID-19 cases rising steadily, favoring women

(Falls County, Texas) - Falls County now has a total of 56 coronavirus cases. 

This comes after a record breaking week for Falls County. Wednesday saw a total of nine new cases, the highest recorded in a single day. Two more cases were identified Thursday, four more Friday, and five new positives Saturday. This at a total of 3.37c percent per 1,000 people and a 61.3 percent increase in positives since July 1. Based on estimations by DSHS , there are  33 active and 23 recovered cases.

Occurrences seem to be overwhelmingly impacting the female population in the county over the male population. In total, more than 30 cases have been female and less than 20 have been male so far. This is a stark opposite to state and nationwide statistics, which show that men have been heavily affected over women. Cases are split almost evenly on both sides of the county at this point, with 27 recorded west of the Brazos River and 29 east of it.

County testing numbers have gone up by over 100 percent since the start of the month, but this may be due to a backlog of tests. According to a representative from Falls Community Hospital, the medical facility has been awaiting past results for a long while. Minimal tests have been done in the last week, with only a single test recorded on July 8.

There have been a total of 2,243 tests administered previous to July 13. In regards to testing, 13.5 percent of the total population or 135.1 people per 1,000 individuals in the county have been tested. 

Testing numbers on the dashboard seem to be corrected daily, as some counties’ have decreased from day to day.

In respect to the five surrounding counties, Falls County has a middle of the road percent increase in positive tests, but the highest percent increase in the number of tests administered.

Mclennan County has had the highest increase in positive test results this month, but has one of the lowest testing increases in testing numbers. There has been a 167.1 percent increase in cases, totalling 2,557 cases on July 13. Cases in the other counties have increased by less than half of that amount, though Limestone and Robertson Counties are above that threshold. Testing in McLennan only increased by about 23 percent in that amount of time, totaling 19,016 administered. McLennan has had a total of 17 fatalities due to COVID-19 and currently has 2,097 active cases.

Surprising most, Bell County has both the lowest increase in tests and the lowest increase in cases. Testing has increased by only 6.5 percent, while cases have increased by about 58 percent. The county is up to 1,852 cases, with 14 fatalities recorded, 25,810 tests given, and 1,512 active cases

Robertson and Limestone Counties have been neck and neck this week, both beginning the month with 52 cases and increasing by similar intervals in the past days. Robertson County now has 115 cases, a 121 percent increase. Limestone County now has a total of 103 cases, a 98 percent increase. Robertson testing numbers have increased by about 63 percent, but Limestone has only seen about half of that amount; at a 31 percent increase. Neither has seen fatalities at this point.

Milam County has seen a 70 percent increase in cases, totalling out at 149 on July 13, according to DSHS. Testing has increased significantly less than that, at 23 percent. The County has 52 active cases and has recorded a single death.

The State of Texas has had less of an increase than Bell County this month, at about 57 percent. There were a total of 264,313 cases on July 12, where there were 168,062 recorded at the start of July. Testing in the state has only increased by 26.8 percent since July 1, totalling out at 2,737,859 tests administered. The state beat it’s daily case record not three, but four times in that week. July 1 had 8,076 new cases, followed only three days later with 8,258 new cases. July 7 saw 10,063 new cases. This was the first time the state has had a one day increase of a five digit number, but it was beaten on July 11 with 10,351 reported cases. There are 8.91 cases per 1,000 people in the state.

The United States has seen an increase of 11.8 percent in the last week, breaking the record for daily cases three times over as well. July 1 had 54,357 new cases, beating the record set the week prior. Only two days later, that record was superseded, with a total of 57,718 new cases recorded. On July 8, nearly 65,000 cases were reported nationwide, bringing the country to more than three million cases. That’s nearly a quarter of the total cases recorded globally. Experts expect that if trends continue the way they have, the United States will have over four million cases before the end of the month. The record was beat again on July 10, with 66,281 new cases. There were 3,296,599 cases as of July 13, along with 134,844 fatalities. On that date, there were 1,005.8 positive cases per 100,000 people in the country.

Citizens are encouraged to continue following the social distancing guideline set forth by the Center for Disease Control. Masks are required for entry into any business and in public places, per Governor Greg Abbott’s executive order released on Thursday, July 2. The order requires Texans living in counties with more than 20 active coronavirus cases to wear a face covering over the nose and mouth while in a business or other building open to the public, as well as outdoor public spaces, whenever social distancing is not possible. But it provides several exceptions, including for children who are younger than 10 years old, people who have a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask, people who are eating or drinking, and people who are exercising outdoors. 

Friday, July 10, Governor Abbott also extended the Declaration of Disaster for the state. Originally issued March 13, the proclamation was renewed due to the sharp increase in cases over the last month.

"Extending this Disaster Declaration helps ensure that Texas has the resources and flexibility needed to effectively respond to COVID-19," said Governor Abbott. "To further mitigate the spread of the virus and overcome this challenge, Texans should continue to do their part by wearing a mask, social distancing, and staying home if possible."

For more information about coronavirus prevention or what to do if you are sick, head to www.coronavirus.gov. Follow cases in Falls County by going to the COVID-19 dashboard found at  www.dshs.state.tx.us/coronavirus.