NET Health: Gregg County’s active COVID-19 cases decrease slightly

Published 5:03 pm Thursday, December 9, 2021

Active cases of COVID-19 in Gregg County on Thursday decreased slightly, according to public health data.

On Thursday, active cases in county residents decreased by almost 2% from Monday, according to statistics released Thursday by the Northeast Texas Public Health District. Thursday’s decline follows an increase shown in Monday’s report.

The county’s active cases decreased from 152 on Monday to 149 Thursday. NET Health reported 26 new cases — 16 confirmed and 10 probable — in the county on Thursday.

The county’s seven-day rolling rate of COVID-19 infection remains unchanged since Monday, still in minimal community spread levels of 7.95. Gregg County has the third-lowest level in the public health district’s seven-county jurisdiction behind Anderson and Rains counties.

The minimal community spread window consists of a rate of between zero and 10 and indicates evidence of isolated cases or limited community transmission, that cases are underway and that there is no evidence of exposure in large, congregate settings. The seven-day rolling rate is determined by taking the average number of all COVID-19 positive cases from the previous seven days. That number is then divided by the population of the county and multiplied by 100,000.

There have been 19,544 COVID-19 cases in Gregg County since the pandemic began, with 19,110 patients recovered, according to NET Health.

Three Gregg County jail inmates had an active diagnosis of COVID-19, according to NET Health’s data on Thursday. There have been no jail deaths, according to the district.

In Gregg County, 53.60% of people age 5 and older had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as of Thursday, while 47.20% of residents 5 and older had been fully vaccinated, according to the state. State data shows 87.75% of people 65 and older had been vaccinated with at least one dose as of Thursday, while 80.98% of that population had been fully vaccinated. As of Nov. 4, children 5 to 11 years of age are included in vaccination numbers and rates.

On Thursday, there were 107 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the state’s 19-county Trauma Region G, approximately 18 more than there were on Monday. Of COVID patients hospitalized, 36 of those are in ICUs and 23 patients are on ventilators. In the first half of September, hospitalizations reached 822, the highest number of single-day COVID-19 hospitalizations in the region since the pandemic began.

Other Counties

According to Judge Chad Sims, Harrison County averaged five new cases per day compared to three the previous week.

“Over the past seven days our new cases have ticked up. While it’s not a substantial uptick, we don’t want to start a trend,” Sims said.

An additional 35 cases of the virus were reported this past week, bringing the active number of cases in Harrison County to 60.

“We might expect an increase in cases during colder weather as many are inside more often. Please take this seriously and protect yourself and those around you,” Sims said.

Smith County saw 79 new total cases — 51 confirmed and 28 probable — reported in Thursday’s data. NET Health reports 36,584 total recoveries in Smith County. There are 513 total active cases in the county.

Henderson County had 21 new cases — 14 confirmed, seven probable — reported since Monday. There are 148 total active cases within the county. There have been 9,714 total recoveries reported.

Van Zandt County had 17 new cases — 14 confirmed, three probable — reported since Monday. There are 152 total active cases within the county. There have been 8,068 total recoveries reported.

Anderson County had 11 new cases — four confirmed, seven probable — reported since Monday. There are 64 total active cases within the county. There have been 5,541 total recoveries reported.

Wood County had 18 new cases — eight confirmed, 10 probable — reported since Monday. There are 140 total active cases within the county. There have been 6,467 total recoveries reported.

Rains County had two probable new cases reported since Monday and there are 13 total active cases within the county. There have been 1,508 total recoveries.

Total recoveries and total active cases include probable and confirmed data. Data gathered in Thursday’s report represents the past 72 hours, from noon Monday to noon Thursday.