NET Health COVID data: Smith County has highest community transmission rate in district

Published 5:30 pm Tuesday, December 28, 2021

COVID-19 community transmission levels are rising in East Texas as other areas of the country are seeing a surge.

All seven counties in NET Health’s have reached moderate community spread levels of the virus, with Smith County leading the way with the highest rate of 27.61. The rate is nearly 80% higher than it was on Thursday at 15.34.

The moderate community spread window consists of a rate between 10 to 35 and indicates sustained transmission with confirmed exposure within congregate settings and potential for rapid increase in cases. The level of community spread 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.

According to data released by NET Health on Tuesday, total active cases in Smith County have risen by just over 27% since Thursday. Tuesday’s data shows 825 — 367 confirmed and 458 probable — total cases compared to 648 on Thursday.

NET Health defines probable cases as those which are attributed to patients who have received positive antigen tests, until the individual has been administered a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test. If a person’s PCR laboratory result is positive, that becomes a confirmed case.

Additionally on Tuesday, NET Health reported 340 new cases — 172 confirmed, 168 probable — in Smith County since Thursday, continuing to add to the number of new COVID-19 cases in December which have surpassed the total number of new cases reported in November. There were a total of 504 COVID-positive cases last month and as of Tuesday, there have been 1,092 new cases this month in the county.

At the beginning of November, there were over 1,000 total active cases within the county. Throughout the month of October, there were 2,005 new COVID-19 cases reported within the county compared to September, in which new cases totaled 8,351, according to NET Health data.

Next to Smith, Rains County has the second-highest moderate spread level in NET Health’s seven-county jurisdiction at 25.11. According to NET Health, since Rains County has the lowest population in the district, it is most prone to have a higher spread rate number, depending on the number of its residents who are testing COVID positive.

The county with the third-highest level is Wood at 19.44. Van Zandt County follows at 17.92 next to Gregg County at 16.71 and Anderson County at 15.58. Henderson County has the lowest spread level of 14.50.

There have been 38,315 COVID-19 cases in Smith County since the pandemic began. NET Health reports 37,066 total recoveries in Smith County.

According to NET Health, there were 82 East Texans being treated for COVID-19 at Tyler hospitals on Tuesday. Similar hospitalization rates in Tyler were seen in early August. Thursday’s data is 78% lower than the hospitalization rate of 389 reached in September in Tyler.

Currently, no Smith County jail inmates has an active diagnosis of COVID-19 and one inmate has died due to COVID-19 since Thursday’s report, according to NET Health.

On Tuesday, there were 113 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the state’s 19-county Trauma Region G, approximately 19 more than there were on Thursday. Of COVID patients hospitalized, 31 of those are in ICUs and 21 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.

As of Tuesday in Smith County, 53.61% of people age 5 and older had received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 47.19% of people age 5 and older had been fully vaccinated, according to the state. State data shows 85.13% of people 65 and older in the county had been vaccinated with at least one dose on Tuesday, while 78.67% 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.

Other Counties

Gregg County had 96 new cases — 33 confirmed, 64 probable — reported since Thursday. There are 258 total active cases within the county. There have been 19,243 total recoveries reported.

Henderson County had 48 new cases — 29 confirmed, 19 probable — reported since Thursday. There are 182 total active cases within the county. There have been 9,831 total recoveries reported.

Van Zandt County had 48 new cases — 22 confirmed, 26 probable — reported since Thursday. There are 149 total active cases within the county. There have been 8,196 total recoveries reported.

Anderson County had 30 new cases — four confirmed, 26 probable — reported since Thursday. There are 126 total active cases within the county. There have been 5,596 total recoveries reported.

Wood County had 25 new cases — 18 confirmed, seven probable — reported since Thursday. There are 111 total active cases within the county. There have been 6,615 total recoveries reported.

Rains County had three new cases — one confirmed, two probable — reported since Thursday and there are 12 total active cases within the county. There have been 1,537 total recoveries.

Total recoveries and total active cases include probable and confirmed data. Data gathered in Tuesday’s report represents data from noon Thursday to noon Tuesday.