DALLAS — This story will be updated throughout the day as new information is released.
Dallas County reported 500 new cases of COVID-19 and 27 additional deaths, including a woman in her 20s who was found dead at home, Judge Clay Jenkins tweeted Monday. The woman had no underlying high-risk health conditions, officials said.
Of the new cases 424 are confirmed and 76 are probable.
The provisional seven-day average of daily new confirmed cases is 17.2 daily new cases per 100,000 residents, county officials said.
There have been 247,974 cases and 3,149 deaths in the county since tracking began March 2020.
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More than 3,500 Arlington ISD educators, staff members to get vaccinated
The effort to vaccinate teachers is underway for educators at Arlington ISD.
Teachers and staff members will get the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday at the Esports Stadium Arlington.
More than 3,500 teachers, administrators and support staff have registered.
The event is in partnership with the Arlington Fire Department.
The district has approximately 10,000 employees, including substitute teachers and part-time workers. Everyone in the district is eligible to receive the vaccine if they have not been previously vaccinated, the district said.
Across Texas, millions have already received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. But the state still has one of the lowest per capita vaccination rates in the country, CDC data showed Monday.
Texas vaccine data as of Monday morning, according to the state health department:
- 6,750,339 doses administered
- 4,361,563 people with at least one vaccine dose
- 2,394,362 people fully vaccinated
- 10,879,585 doses allocated
- 8,342,775 doses shipped
Tarrant County reports 16 new deaths
Tarrant County Public Health reported 16 COVID-19 deaths Monday, one day after county health officials announced 10 more Sunday.
The latest deaths range in age from an Arlington man in his 40s to a Bedford man in his 80s. Officials said they all had underlying health conditions.
Tarrant County also reported 85 new cases Monday. There have now been 245,385 total cases since tracking began in March.
There are currently 342 Tarrant County patients hospitalized due to COVID-19. This is the lowest the county's hospitalizations have been since Oct. 4 when there were 330 patients.
Collin County hospitalizations drop below 200
Collin County currently has 193 COVID-19 hospitalizations as of Monday. This is down from 282 on March 5.
This is the lowest the county's hospitalizations have been since Nov. 8 when there were 176 patients.
Health officials say COVID-19 patients make 7% of Collin County's total hospital bed capacity.
There were also 134 new COVID-19 cases in Collin County Monday, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. This is up from 88 on Sunday.
Collin County is averaging 52 new COVID-19 cases in the past seven days.
Mesquite cancels 2021 Mesquite Rodeo Parade
The city of Mesquite announced Monday that the 2021 Mesquite Rodeo Parade scheduled for March 27 has been canceled out of an abundance of caution for the pandemic.
This is the second consecutive year it will not be held due to the pandemic.
City Manager Cliff Keheley said that despite the state reopening businesses 100% and lifting the mask mandate, the city does not have the ability to organize a safe event of this scope and size with the current condition of the pandemic. He also said there are safety concerns and scheduling issues.
"There is always a great amount of advanced planning and processes that require several months, including state approval of the parade route and registration of participants," said Keheley in a statement. "Rescheduling the parade is not an option, as a new date would be unfair to other community events.”
He said that the city is looking forward to bringing it back in 2022.
A few other events are still planned for the city, including the Bunny Trail Drive-Through event on March 20, a virtual KidFish in April and in-person Movies in the Park on Fridays during the month of May.
Denton County has vaccinated nearly 70,000 people
No-show rates for the COVID-19 vaccine clinics in Denton County are 25%.
The team actively monitors the rate and books slots to account for the average no-show rate to maximize the vaccine stock, a spokesperson said.
The county so far has 115,751 people who have had at least one dose, according to the state health department.
So far, 69,979 people in the county have been fully vaccinated.
The county has an estimated population of 697,330 people 16 years and older.
Denton County Public Health said there are currently 16 ICU beds available in the county's hospitals.
From Jan. 22 to Feb. 28, this number remained below 10.
Health officials also announced 620 new COVID-19 cases Monday, up from 316 on Saturday. There have now been 67,776 cases since tracking began in March.
Of the occupied ICU beds, COVID-19 patients make up 26% of them.
There were no new reported COVID-19 deaths Monday, according to county officials.
Denton County Public Health said there are currently 60 people hospitalized with COVID-19. This number has remained below 100 since March 2.
CDC updates guidance on vaccinated people as vaccine rollout causes mixed emotions
Fully-vaccinated Americans can gather with other vaccinated people indoors without wearing a mask or social distancing, according to long-awaited guidance from federal health officials.
The recommendations also say that vaccinated people can come together in the same way with people considered at low-risk for severe disease, such as in the case of vaccinated grandparents visiting healthy children and grandchildren.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the guidance Monday.
Texas long-term care facilities hit record-low for seven-day average case count
There were 89 new COVID-19 cases added in state nursing facilities and assisted living facilities Monday, according to Texas Health and Human Services.
During the past week, the state has been averaging 50 new cases a day. Since Aug. 1, this is the lowest seven-day average.
The highest seven-day average during this time period is 899, which happened from Dec. 28 to Jan. 3.
State health officials include Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Denton, Grayson, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise counties in Region 3.
There were 18 new COVID-19 cases added in nursing facilities and assisted living facilities Monday, health officials said.
Region 3 is averaging six new cases a day during the past week. Since Aug. 1, the lowest seven-day average is 4, which happened from Sept. 4-10.
The highest seven-day average during this time period is 304, which happened from Jan. 4-10.
