The Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council said there was a ‘surge’ in the number of Covid-19 hospitalizations.
“We certainly don’t want people to panic. We want people to know that there is an increase in the number of COVID cases, nothing like what we had last year,” said Stephen Love, president and CEO of the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council.
He said the number of patients in North Texas hospitals has continued to rise since June.
There were 323 cases on September 1, up 73 from June 21, Love said.
- September 1: Out of 323 Covid-19 patients in hospitals, 25 are children
- August 21: Out of 237 Covid-19 patients in hospitals, 18 are children
- July 21: 134 Covid-19 patients in hospitals, 3 children
- June 21: 73 Covid-19 patients in hospitals, 2 children
“When I talk to infectious disease doctors, I see some of the reports that come into the state, usually more elderly people and people with some kind of underlying health condition who are admitted to the hospital. Now, a lot of people are testing positive. They test positive at home and they’re actually infected with the virus, but they “Not sick enough to come to the hospital, it’s good,” Love said.
This latest number is significantly lower than in August 2022, when there were 800 Covid-19 hospitalizations at DFW hospitals, but health officials want people to be aware.
“Anytime you get an infectious disease, you have to be cautious, and we know that flu season is coming up, and when we see the new vaccine for COVID coming out, has, you want to get, definitely want to get the flu vaccine and now an RSV. There is a vaccine,” Love said.
With school back in session and people returning from summer vacations, the number of Covid-19 cases has increased significantly.
“We are seeing an increasing trend, which is consistent with national trends,” said Cristian Grisales. A spokeswoman for Dallas County Health and Human Services.
He said now is a good time for people to be active as flu and RSV season begins.
“Every precaution you can take to prevent getting sick and ending up in the hospital, that’s what we should be doing,” Grisales said.
Vaccines are believed to help keep people out of the hospital because even if they do get infected, they don’t get sick enough to be admitted.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a new COVID-19 vaccine is expected to be available later this month, which is expected to target different strains of the virus.
“When I talk to epidemiologists, they point to two things. One is that some of the vaccines are starting to decline, if you will, because these are all new strains, and these are all relatives of Omicron. You get XB B XB B 1.5 XB B 1.6, so this new vaccine comes out, and in the next three to four weeks some kind of immunity will help against those variants,” Love said.
According to the latest checks with state and local health officials, the new strain of Covid-19, ‘Prola’, has not yet been detected in Texas.