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Tarrant County reported 8,919 new COVID-19 cases and 11 deaths on Wednesday.
AP
Tarrant County reported 11 COVID-19 deaths and 8,919 new cases on Wednesday.
The latest COVID-related deaths include a Fort Worth man in his 40s, a Bedford man in his 50s, three Fort Worth women in their 60s, a Fort Worth woman in her 70s, a Fort Worth man in his 70s, two Fort Worth men in their 80s, a Hurst man in his 80s, and a Fort Worth woman older than 90.
Two of the 11 did not have underlying health conditions, according to officials.
Tarrant County has reported 402,830 COVID-19 cases, including 5,049 deaths and an estimated 371,314 recoveries.
Note to readers: Tarrant County does not release data on the vaccination status of recently diagnosed patients or deaths. Officials have released this type of data once in June and it showed that nearly 100% of the new cases reported at the time (from May to mid-June) were in people who were not vaccinated. Further, county officials said fewer than 200 of those new cases at the time were in previously vaccinated Tarrant residents.
COVID-19 hospitalizations
Hospitalized COVID patients increased by 85 to 877 in the latest seven-day moving average. The pandemic high was 1,528 on Jan. 6.
COVID-19 hospitalizations increased to 21% from 19% of the total number of beds in Tarrant County and make up 24% of the 3,705 occupied beds. The rate was at a pandemic-high 38% on Jan. 10.
Confirmed COVID patients increased to 15.39% from 13.36% of all available hospital beds in the North Central Texas Trauma Region, which includes 45 counties (divided into three regions). The rate had been below 15% since Oct. 1.
Hospital beds
Tarrant County’s hospital bed occupancy increased to 90% from 89%, according to county data. Available hospital beds decreased by 145 to 411. The pandemic low was 360 on Sept. 20.
ICU beds
Adult ICU bed occupancy increased to 95% from 94%. The rate was last at a pandemic-high 99% on Oct. 7. Ventilator use increased by 18 to 259. Patients are using 35% of the 750 ventilators in the county.
Positivity rate
The COVID-19 positive test rate for Tarrant County increased slightly to a pandemic-high 35.91% from 35.31% in the latest available seven-day-average data. The rate has generally increased since Dec. 12.
Vaccination data
Children ages 5 and older are now eligible for vaccination, so the following vaccination percentages have been altered by the Texas Department of State Health Services to reflect that larger population.
According to Texas DSHS, 66.14% of Tarrant County residents 5 or older have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 58.01% of residents 5 or older have been fully vaccinated.
DSHS also reports that 91.61% of Tarrant residents 65 or older have received at least one dose, and 84.12% of residents 65 or older have been fully vaccinated.
More than 72.17% of Texas residents 5 or older have received at least one dose, according to DSHS. The rate of fully vaccinated Texas residents 5 or older is at 61.32%.
Tarrant County is offering free COVID-19 vaccines and testing at locations throughout the area.
Tarrant County COVID-19 deaths by city
Here are the total pandemic-related deaths in Tarrant County by city through Jan. 5:
Texas daily coronavirus case counts over time, and the ten counties with the most cases. Tap the arrow button to replay the animation.
Hospital capacity by available beds and ventilators for Tarrant County. Data provided by Tarrant County Public Health.
Stefan Stevenson has been covering sports for the Star-Telegram since 1997. He spent five years covering TCU athletics, which included two BCS bowls, two trips to the college World Series and the move to the Big 12. He has covered the Texas Rangers since 2014 and started reporting on the Dallas Cowboys in 2016.
