The number of COVID-19 cases in Milam County and Texas is going up again at an accelerated rate, figures show.
In the county the number has gone up by 39 in just two days, while Texas, along with Florida, leads the nation in reported new cases. All this despite the availability of vaccines since January of this year.
“I write this evening to alert each of you to an alarming rise in the number of active COVID-19 cases in Milam County,” Milam County Judge Steve Young reported in his email. “Yesterday (Sunday), we had 20 new confirmed cases and today (Tuesday), we have an additional 19 new confirmed active cases. This brings the total active confirmed cases of the virus in Milam County to 102. Furthermore, we tested 42 individuals in Rockdale today; 18 of those were positive, including six minors. We only had six active cases as we began the month of July and now we are racing toward our all time record of 173 active cases set back in late December 2020.”
Young noted that in the month of July there were four COVID-19 deaths. None of those who died had been vaccinated.
“We now have 12 individuals who are hospitalized and two of those are on a ventilator and in serious condition,” he said.
The judge pointed out that now there is a vaccine that is readily available to anyone 12 years of age or older. The vaccines will protect against a serious infection meaning a vaccinated person is unlikely to become seriously ill or die from an infection.
Milam County, is vaccinating with the Moderna and Pfizer drugs. Both have been given an emergency use authorization by the FDA.
An Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) is a mechanism to facilitate the availability and use of medical countermeasures, including vaccines, during public health emergencies, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Currently, over 8,000 Milam County residents have been vaccinated, representing about 38% of the approximately 21,000 individuals that could be vaccinated.
“Today, I met with a nice lady who resides in the county. She was infected and spent 34 days in a local hospital,” Young said. “She was released in June, but she still has trouble breathing. She recanted that she should have gotten vaccinated, but someone told her to wait, ‘what a mistake’ she said. She wanted everyone to know that it because once infected, it is too late for the shot.”
COVID-19 numbers
• Total cases: 1,615.
• Active cases: 68 (up 5).
• Probable cases: 1,143 (Antigen detected test results, not included in total case count.)
• Active cases: 34 (up 18).
• 102 total active cases in Milam County.
• Total hospitalized: 234. There are currently 12 people (up 4) from the county in hospitals with two of them on ventilators.
• Fatalities: 53.
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