Fort Bend County changes COVID-19 community impact level to ‘high’

Originally published July 13, 2022, on the Houston Chronicle website at https://tinyurl.com/ycybhbas.

A recent spike in COVID-19 cases has resulted in Fort Bend County raising its community impact level to “high.”

According to the Fort Bend County Department of Health and Human Services, COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations have increased across in the Houston region. The county updates its COVID cases weekly since the beginning of June. For the week ending Wednesday, July 13, reports more than 2,200 confirmed cases and another 259 suspected cases.

“Get vaccinated and stay up-to-date on recommended booster shots to protect yourself, your family, and friends,” stated Fort Bend County Judge KP George in a news release. “As always I believe in being transparent and informing our residents about any changes to our levels while encouraging them to continue to follow the CDC’s guidelines and recommendations.”

Data released from the Health & Human Services Department “shows an average of 230 active cases per 100,000 residents. A key determining metric for at-risk community levels, the current number exceeds the 200 cases per 100,000 threshold that the CDC has put forth with its current guidelines.”

Figures from the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council indicate that there have been 65 admissions for COVID-19 since Sunday, July 10. Further, it is reports that 10.8 percent of all hospital admissions are COVID positive. On Wednesday, July 13, 100 patients either suspected or confirmed to have COVID are hospitalized in Fort Bend County.

Fort Bend County Judge KP George added that vaccination is the “most effective tool we have to fight the virus.”

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Fort Bend County has reported 181,171 cases of COVID with 1,274 reported deaths. The last reported death was on July 3.

The county reports that 513,723 residents have been fully vaccinated out an estimated 882,509 residents.

To schedule an appointment to get tested call 281-633-7795 on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon, or visit www.fbchealth.org to view the FBC COVID-19 testing and vaccination locations. For questions only, call the vaccination hotline at 832-471-1373.