For the latest news on the pandemic, visit KERA's COVID-19 live updates page.
Saturday, Dec. 12
Dallas County Reports 2,111 New Cases, 8 Deaths
Dallas County Health and Human Services is reporting 2,111 new positive cases, 1,669 confirmed cases and 442 probable cases.
Eight deaths are also reported:
- A Garland Man in his 50s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- A Farmers Branch man in his 50s who had been critically ill in a hospital
- A Dallas woman in her 60s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- An Irving man in his 60s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- A Mesquite man in his 60s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- A Dallas man in his 60s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- A Dallas man in his 60s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
- A DeSoto woman in her 80s who had been critically ill in a hospital and had underlying health conditions
The countywide total now stands at 141,972 cases, including 1,323 confirmed deaths. There is a cumulative total of 15,364 probable cases, including 52 probable deaths.
1,276 New Cases Reported In Tarrant County
Tarrant County is reporting 1,276 cases and 25 new deaths -- the sixth consecutive day of double-digit fatalities.
No details about the latest victims were available.
This brings the total number of cases to 118,207 and 972 deaths.
587 New Cases In Collin County
The state is reporting 587 confirmed cases to Collin County's tally. Three new deaths were also reported. The county's total number of cases is now 31,856 and a death toll of 298.
Denton County Announces 423 New Cases
Denton County Public Health is reporting 423 new cases, 345 of which are active cases. The countywide total number of cases is now 29,886.
Friday, Dec. 11
Denton County Reports 886 Cases And Four Deaths
The county now has 165 deaths total. The deaths include:
- A male in his 70s who was a resident of Pilot Point
- A male in his 60s who was a resident of Denton State Supported Living Center
- A female over 80 who was a resident of Cross Timbers Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Flower Mound
- A male over 80 who was a resident of Carrollton
“With a record number of positive COVID-19 cases today and four deaths, we continue to see an escalation of the virus in our area,” said Denton County Judge Andy Eads. “The increase in cases continues to impact our healthcare system as we see a reduction in the number of available staffed ICU beds. We ask you to please follow the recommended safety precautions and keep the families of these four individuals in your thoughts and prayers.”
DCPH also announced 886 new cases of COVID-19 in Denton County, a new daily record. This increases the cumulative, countywide total to 29,463 COVID-19 cases. DCPH also reported 301 newly recovered cases of COVID-19, increasing the countywide recovery total to 20,503.
Dallas County Reports 1,849 Cases And 20 Deaths
The 1,849 cases increase the countywide total to 141,303. The countywide death total is now 1,315. The 20 deaths include:
- A man in his 40s from Cedar Hill
- A woman in her 40s from Dallas
- A man in his 50s from Mesquite
- A woman in his 50s from Grand Prairie
- Two women in their 50s from Dallas
- Two in their 60s from Dallas
- A woman in her 60s from Dallas
- A man in his 60s from DeSoto
- A man in his 70s from Mesquite
- Two men in their 70s from Dallas
- A woman in her 80s from Dallas
- A man in his 80s from Dallas
- A man in his 80s from Farmers Branch
- A man in his 80s from DeSoto
- A man in his 90s from Dallas
- A woman in her 90s from Dallas
- A woman in her 90s from Mesquite
“This is already our most deadly week of COVID and the high numbers we have experienced today and over the last several weeks inform medical modelers as to how many serious hospitalizations, ventilator patients, and ultimately deaths we are likely to see next month," Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said. "The decisions that we make to wear our mask, avoid crowds, and forgo get-togethers will largely determine what our new COVID positive numbers will look like a week to two weeks from now and how many hospitalizations, ICU patients and deaths we have in the weeks that follow."
Tarrant County Reports 20 Deaths
The deceased included a woman from Fort Worth in her 90s, two men and a woman from Mansfield in their 80s, a woman from Grand Prairie in her 80s, a man from Arlington in his 80s, a man and two women from Fort Worth in their 80s, a woman from Benbrook in her 80s, a man from Arlington in his 70s, a man from Mansfield in his 70s, a man from North Richland Hills in his 70s, a woman from Crowley in her 70s, a woman from Watauga in her 60s, a man from Mansfield in his 60s, a man from Arlington in his 60s a woman from Hurst in her 50s, a man from Fort Worth in his 50s, and a woman from Fort Worth in her 20s.
Tarrant County now has 947 confirmed deaths and 84,318 people have recovered.
Collin County Reports 506 Cases
The 506 new cases increase the countywide total to 31,269. Four deaths were reported, bringing the countywide total to 295.
Gov. Abbott Announces Vaccination Program For Long-Term Care Facilities
Governor Greg Abbott announced on Friday that the state will take part in a federal program to vaccinate residents and staff of long-term care facilities against COVID-19.
The Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program will provide these facilities with staff and Pfizer vaccines from partnering Walgreens and CVS locations, free of charge.
"The Pharmacy Partnership for Long-Term Care Program will help the State of Texas facilitate safe vaccinations among some of our most vulnerable populations, and it will help us protect residents and staff of long-term care facilities from COVID-19," Gov. Abbott said.
Pharmacies will first receive the vaccines the week of Dec. 21 and the program will begin Dec. 28.
Across the state, over 1,200 skilled nursing facilities and over 2,000 other long-term care facilities have signed up for the program.
Long-term care facilities that haven’t enrolled in the program can opt to enroll with the Texas Department of State Health Services' (DSHS) Immunization Program.
Dallas Public Library To Distribute Over 2,000 Internet Hotspots
The Dallas Public Library has purchased 2,100 internet hotspots for those who need to get connected and will start distributing them on Dec. 15.
These hotspots are an addition to the 900 that are already in circulation. The new hotspots were granted this September when the city of Dallas approved the funding in the city budget.
In a global pandemic world, it's become clear online connectivity is essential, but more than 40% of Dallas families still don’t have access to the internet.
"While we know this is not the big fix for the digital divide in Dallas, this is a Band-Aid. This is something to get us started in helping those folks get connected to opportunities to better employment and education," said Jo Giudice, library director.
Giudice says this is a step in the right direction to getting people more access to the internet.
The Wi-Fi hotspots will be available for pickup through the Library- To-Go curbside service.
"You can put a request in for them right now by searching hotspot in the library catalog and get on the list right now," said Giudice.
Curbside pickup is available at all 29 library locations and you can find them here.
Senator John Cornyn Says Possibility Of Another Wave Of Stimulus Checks
As Congress continues to negotiate another COVID-19 relief bill, U.S. Senator John Cornyn yesterday told reporters another round of stimulus checks is possible.
“I think President Trump has made it clear he wants to do that,” he said. “My colleague Josh Hawley has filed legislation to mandate that. I do think it needs to be targeted. In other words, to go to people who have been out of work and haven’t had income, rather than just distribute money equally to everybody.”
Congressional leaders hope to pass a bill this month.
Money from the CARES Act, will soon run out for those depending on unemployment benefits.
TEA Says STAAR Testing Won’t Be Used For School, District Ratings
The Texas Education Agency says students will take the STAAR test this year, but the agency won't use the results to grade schools and districts.
Yesterday's announcement followed months of lobbying by superintendents and other education advocates for canceling the test this school year.
Education Commissioner Mike Morath rejected that idea. He called the STAAR test a useful tool to measure how much learning loss has occurred during the pandemic.
Thursday, Dec. 10
Texas Is Ready To Distribute 100,000 Vaccines Upon Approval
Texas Governor Greg Abbott says the state is ready to distribute 100,000 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, as soon as it's approved by the FDA. Healthcare workers and nursing home residents will be first in line.
Patty Ducayet is the Texas State Long-term Care Ombudsman. She told Texas Standard that both long-term care facility residents and employees will be in the first round of vaccine distributions.
"Employees of the facility really are all very vulnerable to one, getting the virus and, bringing it in, and spreading the virus to residents," Ducayet said. "So all people inside that facility are really essential and they're in need of the vaccine too."
Ducayet said the vaccine is not mandatory for long-term-care facility residents. They can refuse it, or their legal representative can refuse for them.
Dallas County Reports 2,088 Cases And 30 Deaths
The county now has 1,299 deaths total. The deaths include:
- A man in his 50s who was a resident of the City of Irving.
- A man in his 50s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 50s who was a resident of the City of Seagoville.
- A woman in her 50s who was a resident of the City of Desoto.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Mesquite.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Garland.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of a long term care facility in Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 70s who was a resident of the City of Duncanville.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 80s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of the City of Garland.
- A woman in her 80s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of the City of Desoto.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
Of all confirmed cases requiring hospitalization to date, more than two-thirds have been under 65 years of age. Of the total confirmed deaths reported to date, about 23% have been associated with long-term care facilities.
14 Deaths In Tarrant County
The deaths included a man from Fort Worth in his 80s, a man and woman from Arlington in his 80s, a man from Mansfield in his 80s, a woman from Richland Hills in her 80s, a woman from Haltom City in her 70s, a man from Arlington in his 70s, a man from North Richland Hills in his 70s, a woman from Arlington in her 60s, two women from Fort Worth in their 50s, a woman from Haltom City in her 50s, a man from Arlington in his 50s, a woman from Arlington in her 40s.
Tarrant County now has 927 confirmed deaths and 82,938 people have recovered.
681 Cases In Denton County
The county's cumulative total is now 28,577 cases. Denton County Public Health also reported 253 newly recovered cases, increasing the recovery total to 20,203.
531 Cases In Collin County
There are now a total of 30,763 cases in the county. The county's cumulative death total is 291.
If Congress Doesn't Pass Pandemic Relief, More Than 315,000 Self-Employed Texans Could Be Affected
More than 315,000 self-employed Texans could lose unemployment relief the day after Christmas.
The Texas Tribune reports gig-workers and independent contractors usually aren't eligible for unemployment benefits. But a provision in the CARES Act that allowed them to qualify will expire December 26th unless Congress passes a new COVID relief bill.
The most recent bipartisan proposal includes an extension in unemployment for self-employed Americans, but parties can't agree on how much. The U.S. House yesterday decided to extend negotiations into next week.
State Agriculture Commissioner Tests Positive For COVID-19
Sid Miller, the State Agriculture Commissioner, is quarantining at his ranch after testing positive for COVID-19.
Miller has been critical of the governor's measures to help slow the coronavirus pandemic. He was among an estimated 200 people gathered outside the governor's mansion to blast Greg Abbott's executive orders.
According to the Texas Tribune, Miller is the second known statewide elected official to contract the virus. It is unclear how he contracted the virus or whether he has received medical attention.
Wednesday, Dec. 9
Dallas County Reports 33 Deaths, 1,348 New Cases
The 33 deaths brings the countywide total to 1,275.
"This is the second highest number of deaths we’ve reported in one day from COVID-19 and a chilling reminder of the importance of making good choices at this time of extremely high community spread," Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said.
The deaths include:
- A man in his 20s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 30s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 40s who was a resident of the City of Balch Springs.
- A man in his 40s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 50s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 50s who was a resident of the City of Duncanville.
- A man in his 50s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 50s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 50s who was a resident of the City of Mesquite.
- A man in his 50s who was a resident of the City of Lancaster.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 60s who was a resident of the City of Mesquite.
- A man in his 60s who was a resident of the City of Mesquite.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Lancaster.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 70s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 70s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 80s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 80s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Lancaster.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 80s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of the City of Dallas.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of long term care facility in the City of Dallas.
- A woman in her 90s who was a resident in the City of Hutchins.
- A man in his 90s who was a resident of the City of Cedar Hill.
Tarrant County Reports 15 Deaths
The deaths include a man from Fort Worth in his 90s, a woman from Arlington in her 90s, a woman from Arlington in her 80s, a man from Kennedale in his 80s, a man from Arlington in his 80s, three men and a woman from Fort Worth in their 70s, a man from Arlington in his 70s, a man from Euless in his 70s, a man from Arlington in his 60s, a man from Haltom City in his 50s, a man from Everman in his 50s, and a male from Fort Worth between 10 and 19.
Tarrant County now has 913 confirmed deaths, and 81,507 people have recovered.
Denton County Reports Another Record Single-Day Total For Positive Cases
The county reported 716 new cases, of which 564 are active cases. This increases the cumulative, countywide total to 27,897 cases. DCPH also reported 258 newly recovered cases of COVID-19, increasing the countywide recovery total to 19,950.
“Today’s report, like other record-breaking days Denton County has experienced recently, simply illustrates the reality of this infection,” stated Dr. Matt Richardson, Denton County Public Health Director. “Masks, distancing, and the forthcoming vaccines are the vehicles that will take us to normalcy in 2021, but we must do our part now to ease the burden on our stressed hospitals and ICUs.”
Fort Worth ISD Board Of Education Awards Employees A Stipend
At a meeting on Tuesday, board trustees unanimously voted to support a resolution where all eligible full-time Fort Worth ISD employees get a one-time $1,000 stipend, and all eligible part-time employees get a $500 stipend.
Board President Jacinto Ramos Jr. spoke about the decision in a YouTube video.
As Capacity Rollbacks Begin, Some Local Leaders Want To Ramp Up Mitigation Efforts
North Texas last week became the 7th region in the state to meet the Governor's COVID threshold for reducing business capacity.
Nonessential businesses like retail stores and restaurants had to reduce indoor occupancy from 75% to 50%. Some local leaders say they’d like to do more to mitigate the latest coronavirus surge. But, University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus said their hands are tied.
"The governor has given local municipalities a very short leash on which to operate,” he said. “And within that context, they’re struggling to combat the virus on the ground.”
El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego tried to issue a local shutdown order in October, but a state appeals court ultimately blocked the order.
3 Members Of State Board Of Education Test Positive
At least three members of the State Board of Education have tested positive for COVID-19 after meeting in person last month.
The Texas Tribune reports results for El Paso Democrat Georgina Pérez and two other unnamed board members came back within two weeks of the last day of the board meeting.
The 15-member board meets five times a year to discuss Texas curriculum standards. Its April and June meetings were held virtually, as COVID-19 cases spiked, but the September and November meetings were held in person.
None of the support staff members in the room have since tested positive.
Tuesday, Dec. 8
860 New Cases, 13 Deaths In Tarrant County
The 13 deaths included a woman from Fort Worth in her 90s, a man and woman from Fort Worth in their 80s, two women from Fort Worth in their 70s, a man from Forest Hill in his 70s, a man from Euless in his 70s, a woman from Arlington in her 70s, two men from Fort Worth in their 60s, a woman from White Settlement in her 60s, a woman from Fort Worth in her 60s and a woman from Grapevine in her 30s.
Tarrant County now has 898 deaths countywide, and the 860 new cases bring the total case count to 112,725. There are only 18 available ICU beds as well, according to Tarrant County Public Health Director Vinny Taneja.
"Trends continue up, hospitalizations has been up, we've surpassed the peak in July," Taneja said. "We'd like to be in a downward trend, but unfortunately there's no end in sight on the upward trend here."
Taneja also told county commissioners that once the first COVID-19 vaccine is approved, county healthcare workers will be first in line for distribution.
Dallas County Reports 1,105 New Cases, Eight Deaths
With the new cases, Dallas County now has 137,143 cumulative cases. The eight deaths included: an Irving man in his 20s, a DeSoto man in his 40s, a Dallas woman in her 50s, a Grand Prairie man in his 60s, a Dallas woman in her 60s, a Grand Prairie woman in her 70s, a Garland woman in her 70s, and a Dallas man in his 90s.
The county has a total of 1,245 deaths.
Denton County Reports Three Deaths
The deaths were: a woman in her 70s who was a resident of Cedar Ridge Rehabilitation in Pilot Point, a man in his 50s from Lewisville, and a man in his 80s who was a resident of Longmeadow Healthcare Center in Justin. Denton County now has a total of 161 deaths.
Denton County Public Health also reported 560 new cases, of which 394 are active cases. This increases the cumulative, countywide total to 27,181 cases.
Federal Medical Center In Fort Worth Sees Surge In Cases Among Staff
A federal prison in Fort Worth is seeing another spike in coronavirus cases -- this time among staff.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports the Federal Medical Center has had 18 staff members test positive for the virus as of yesterday.
Gregory Watts heads the union at FMC Fort Worth. He called the increase in staff cases alarming and said he hopes the prison isn't headed for another outbreak.
Over the summer, more than 600 inmates at the Fort Worth unit had COVID-19; 12 also have died from the virus.
Tomorrow is the deadline for Fort Worth residents who live outside city limits to apply for rental assistance.
Tarrant Assistance Program Allocated $10 Million In Funding
NBC-5 reports county commissioners set aside $10 million in CARES Act funding for the Care-4-Tarrant assistance program.
But with the county receiving more than 200 applications a day, the pot of available money is also dwindling.
The rental help is for anyone whose income has been disrupted by COVID-19 and there are several ways to qualify.
You can find more details at Fortworthtexas.gov.
Gov. Abbott Launches Program Offering Rapid Testing To Small Businesses
The Governor's launched a program to provide small businesses with rapid tests for their employees.
Gov. Abbott yesterday said the state emergency management division will give local chambers of commerce testing supplies to allocate to participating businesses.
A similar program for school systems was implemented in October.
Monday, Dec. 7
Texas Had Over 92,000 New Cases Last Week
Since last Sunday, 92,000 new coronavirus cases have been reported in Texas. Cases, hospitalizations and deaths continue to steadily increasing statewide. There were 1,200 new deaths reported on Sunday.
The virus continues to disproportionately affect communities of color, including the state’s Latino population, which makes up 53% of all deaths, even though it only represents 39.7% of the state’s population.
Coronavirus has killed 22,500 Texans since March. There have been over 374,000 new cases reported in the state in the past four weeks.
Over 1,600 New Cases & 3 More Deaths In Dallas County Today
Dallas County is reporting 1,663 new cases today — all but 57 are confirmed. That brings the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases reported in the county to 136,283 cases, including 1,237 confirmed deaths.
"I’m seeing some signs that people are taking the warnings seriously and minimizing their time around others outside of their home," Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a statement. "If we all will make incremental changes to improve our response to COVID, thinking not just about keeping ourselves safe, but about making our community and our country stronger until the vaccine can have its effect, we will come through this in as strong of a position as possible."
The three deaths reported today are described as:
- A Dallas man in his 60s
- A Lancaster woman in her 80s
- A DeSoto man in his 90s
All three had been hospitalized and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
Tarrant County Reports 11 More Deaths & 1,850 New Cases
The COVID-related death toll in Tarrant County has reached 885. With 1,850 new cases reported today, the county's now had 111,865 coronavirus cases.
The residents' deaths reported today are described as:
- A Sansom Park woman in her 90s
- A Fort Worth man from in his 90s
- a woman from Crowley in her 80s
- From Arlington Arlington man and woman in their 80s, and a woman in her 70s
- A Bedford man in his 80s
- An Arlington woman in her 70s
- From Fort Worth: a woman in her 60s and a Man in his 50s
- An Azle woman 60s
All had underlying health conditions.
Denton County Has Nearly 600 New Cases
There are 592 new cases of COVID-19 in Denton County today, of which 386 are active cases. This increases the cumulative, countywide total to 26,623 cases, including 158 total deaths.
The county will have free drive-through testing starting at 8 a.m. Friday at North Central Texas College’s Exchange Parking Garage in Denton.
Any county resident who hasn't tested positive for COVID-19 before is eligible for testing. People must register in advance by calling 940-349-2585.
Virus Hitting Black & Latino Communities Even Harder Than Experts Thought
After reevaluating death data related to race and ethnicity, the Centers for Disease Control discovered that the virus is taking a much heavier toll on African-Americans and Latinos than previously understood.
This second look has determined that Latinos and Black Americans are dying at much younger ages and at a rate of almost three times that of White Americans.
Baylor College of Medicine Vaccine Scientist Peter Hotez has followed COVID’s impact on the Latino population in Texas, and he says we’re witnessing an historic decimation of a community.
“This is robbing the Hispanic community of a generation of mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters," Hotez said.
This new data underscores a message about vaccines that Hotez has been adamant about sharing far and wide.
"These at-risk populations need to be as close to the front of the vaccine line as possible," Hotez said.
Read the full story from TPR News.
Sunday, Dec. 6
Dallas County Reports 1,852 New Cases
There are 1,852 additional cases in the area, raising the total to 134,677. Of the reported cases today, 1,787 are confirmed and 65 are probable cases.
Three deaths were reported today including: Two Dallas men in their 60s and a Dallas man in his 70s.
1,535 New Cases In Tarrant County
Another 1,535 cases were reported in the area, raising the total to 110,015. Two deaths were reported today: a Fort Worth woman in her 90s and a Fort Worth woman in her 60s. Both patients had underlying health conditions.
Collin County Reports 692 New Cases
There are an additional 692 cases in the county, raising the total to 29,239. There have been 277 deaths and 25,564 people who have recovered from the virus in the area.
Read More: A Timeline Of COVID-19's Spread In North Texas
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