DALLAS — Tarrant County Public Health said that as of Friday, there are 152 people hospitalized with COVID-19. There were 138 the previous day.
This is the 15th consecutive day the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations has been below 200.
The COVID-19 patients make up 3% of the total hospital bed capacity. The county currently has a 14-day average of 158 hospitalizations.
Health officials reported 208 new COVID-19 cases Friday. There have been 252,669 total cases in the county since tracking began in March 2020.
As of Wednesday, 842,523 doses of COVID-19 vaccines had been out in Tarrant County.
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Dallas County reports 294 new cases
Dallas County health officials announced 294 cases Friday, bringing the county total to 253,668 since tracking began in March 2020.
Of these new cases, 72 are considered probable because they came from antigen tests. Twenty-seven are the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first detected in the U.K., and four of the additional cases are of the B.1.429 variant, which was first detected in California.
"The vaccine is effective against all of these variants & we are in a race against mutations to get to herd immunity before the vaccine mutates," Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said in a Tweet. "To move beyond the efficacy of the current vaccine. In order to successfully mutate, the vaccine must have hosts and each person who gets vaccinated is one less host for the virus."
There were also 18 new deaths in the county. These ranged in age from a Dallas man in his 20s to a Desoto woman in her 90s.
There are currently 197 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Dallas County.
Collin County hospitalizations drop below 100
Collin County health officials say the county currently has 92 COVID-19 hospitalizations as of Friday, down from 103 on Thursday. This number has remained below 200 since March 8.
Health officials say COVID-19 patients make 3% of Collin County's total hospital bed capacity.
There were also 38 new COVID-19 cases in Collin County Friday, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. This is down from 104 on Thursday.
Collin County is averaging 63 new COVID-19 cases in the past 14 days.
Denton County has second consecutive day with fewer than 100 new cases
Denton County health officials announced 87 new COVID-19 cases Friday, one day after announcing 76 new cases.
There have now been 72,583 total cases since tracking began in March 2020.
There are currently 38 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Denton County. The county currently has a 14-day average of 36 hospitalizations.
There are also currently 15 ICU beds available in the county's hospitals.
COVID-19 patients currently make up 25% of the current Denton County patients in ICU beds.
As of Friday, 168,056 people in Denton County have received their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and 88,827 have received their second doses.
Tarrant County completes vaccine appointments to everyone on waitlist
Tarrant County Public Health says that they have completed issuing vaccine appointments to all who are on the waiting list.
As people continue to sign up, they can expect to be contacted within 24 to 48 hours with an appointment.
If you have registered recently and have not received an appointment, call the hotline at 817-248-6299.
Garland hosting vaccination event on Tuesday
The City of Garland Health Department will host a mass COVID-19 vaccination event on Tuesday, April 13.
It will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. at Homer B. Johnson Stadium, located at 1029 E. Centerville Road.
The drive-thru event will provide citizens with one dose of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine while supplies last. No appointment is needed.
Pfizer asks FDA to expand emergency use of vaccine to kids
Pfizer announced Friday it has submitted a request to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to expand emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine to kids as young as 12.
Most COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out are for adults, who are at higher risk from the coronavirus.
In late March, Pfizer announced a study of its COVID-19 vaccine that found it safe for kids as young as 12.