Dallas County Reports 85 New Positive 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Cases
Posted on 05/24/2021
City of Dallas

As of 12:00 pm, May 22, 2021, Dallas County Health and Human Services is reporting 85 additional positive cases of 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Dallas County, 57 confirmed cases, and 25 probable cases. There is a cumulative total of 260,037 confirmed cases (PCR test). There is a cumulative total of 42,413 probable cases (antigen test). A total of 4,022 Dallas County residents have lost their lives due to COVID-19 illness.

Risklevel Proceedcarefully

Dallas County Health and Human Services (DCHHS) is providing initial vaccinations to those most at risk of exposure to COVID-19 and over 473,000 total doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered at the Fair Park mega-vaccine clinic, which started operations on Monday, January 11. Vaccine operations for both first and second doses at Fair Park resumed on Saturday.

The additional deaths being reported today include the following:

  • A man in his 40's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
  • A man in his 50's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He expired at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
  • A man in his 50's who was a resident of the City of Grand Prairie. He had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
  • A man in his 50's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
  • A man in his 70's who was a resident of the City of Dallas. He had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions.

To date, a total of 87 cases with SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern have been identified in residents of Dallas County, including 69 cases of variant B.1.1.7; seven B.1.429 variants; two B.1.526 variants; six P.1 variants; one P.2 variant, and two B.1.617.2 cases. Five have been hospitalized with 3 requiring intensive care unit admission, and one has died. Eight had history of recent domestic travel outside of Texas. One case of B.1.1.7 is a likely instance of reinfection with COVID-19, occurring over 6 months after an initial PCR-confirmed infection. The provisional seven-day average of daily new confirmed and probable cases (by date of test collection) for CDC week 19 was 141, which is a rate of 5.3 daily new cases per 100,000 residents. Over the past 2 weeks, rates of new COVID-19 diagnoses in Addison and Balch Springs have been more than 50% higher than county-wide case rates. Rates of new COVID-19 diagnoses in Cedar Hill, Coppell, and Mesquite have been 30% higher than county-wide case rates. Of symptomatic patients presenting to area hospitals in week 19 (week ending 5/15/21), 6.2% of respiratory specimens tested positive SARS-CoV-2.

During the past 30 days, there were 1,106 COVID-19 cases in school-aged children and staff reported from 417 separate K-12 schools in Dallas County. During the months of April and May, 20% of all COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Dallas County were in children under the age of 18 years-the highest proportion in this age group since the beginning of the pandemic. To date, 67 children have been hospitalized with diagnoses of multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C), a rare but serious complication associated with COVID-19 infection. In Dallas County, 571 cases of COVID-19 breakthrough COVID-19 infections in fully vaccinated individuals have been confirmed to date, of which 95 were hospitalized, and 10 have died.

There are currently 29 active long-term care facility outbreaks. A cumulative total of 4,380 residents and 2,471 healthcare workers in long-term facilities in Dallas have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Of these, 1,101 have been hospitalized and 791 have died. About 20% of all deaths reported to date have been associated with long-term care facilities. Ten outbreaks of COVID-19 in congregate-living facilities (e.g. homeless shelters, group homes, and halfway homes) have been reported in the past 30 days. A cumulative total of 621 residents and 223 staff members in congregate-living facilities in Dallas have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Of all confirmed cases requiring hospitalization to date, more than two-thirds have been under 65 years of age. Diabetes has been an underlying high-risk health condition reported in about a third of all hospitalized patients with COVID-19. New cases are being reported as a daily aggregate, with more detailed summary reports updated Tuesday and Friday evenings, available at https://www.dallascounty.org/departments/dchhs/2019-novel-coronavirus/daily-updates.php.

Local health experts use hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and ER visits as three of the key indicators as part of determining the COVID-19 Risk Level (color-coded risk) and corresponding guidelines for activities during our COVID-19 response. The most recent COVID-19 hospitalization data for Dallas County, as reported to the North Central Texas Trauma Regional Advisory Council, can be found at www.dallascounty.org/covid-19 under "Monitoring Data," and is updated regularly. This data includes information on the total available ICU beds, suspected and confirmed COVID-19 ER visits in the last 24 hours, confirmed COVID-19 inpatients, and COVID-19 deaths by actual date of death. The most recent forecasting from UTSW can be found here.

Covid 19 Actual DeathsCovid 19 ImpatientsCovid 19 ER VisitsCovid 19 ICU Beds

Weekly Covid 19 Summary

"Today we report an additional 82 cases and five deaths. For the week, we grieve the loss of 44 people, making this one of our least deadly weeks this year. For the week we are averaging 156 daily cases. This is a decrease from last week, which had an average of 179 cases, and a four week decline in COVID positive cases, largely due to increased vaccinations. To keep these numbers going, we need to encourage those who are yet to be vaccinated about the danger of COVID and the importance of getting vaccinated. If we all reach out and help get one more person vaccinated, statistically we would be a full vaccination. So, please do your part; be a hero for your community and for the person you help. Convince someone to take the live-saving vaccine," said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins.

All Dallas County COVID-19 Updates and Information can be found here: https://www.dallascounty.org/covid-19/ and all guidance documents can be found here: https://www.dallascounty.org/covid-19/guidance-health.php
Specific Guidance for the Public:

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends taking everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory diseases, including:

  • Avoid close contact outside your home: Put 6 feet of distance between yourself and people who don't live in your household.
  • Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others and continue to keep about 6 feet between yourself and others. The cloth face cover is not a substitute for social distancing.
  • Stay home when you are sick, except to seek medical care
  • Wash your hands often and with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and help young children to do the same. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
    Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces daily using a regular household cleaning spray or wipes.
  • Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash. If you do not have a tissue, use your sleeve, not your hands. Immediately wash your hands.
  • Monitor your health daily. Be alert for symptoms. Take your temperature and follow CDC guidance if symptoms develop.

Additional information is available at the following websites: