Now that our North Texas kids are back in school, what’s happening with our COVID cases?

Not surprisingly, they are going up…
Back to School COVID Update
And that’s because the Delta surge is far from over.

And area vaccination rates are not very high…
Add in the fact that most schools aren’t mandating masks or even quarantining exposed students and it should be no surprise that cases are surging.
As of September 1:
- the test positivity rate is back up to 0.20, off the recent highs of 0.25 last month, but back up from a recent low of 0.17 a few weeks ago
- Rockwall County has had an estimated 12,523 recovered cases, about 971 active cases, and 170 deaths (including 6 new deaths in recent weeks)
- Garland ISD now has 76 active staff cases and 629 active student cases
- Rockwall ISD already has 63 active staff cases and 268 active student cases
- Wylie ISD already has 32 active staff cases and 255 active student cases
- Royse City ISD already has 20 active staff cases and 94 active student cases
- Caddo Mills ISD still has 15 active staff cases and 27 active student cases
- at least six Rockwall County daycare centers have had active cases in the past two weeks among students or staff
- hospital and ICU occupancy rates are back over 90 to 95%, which is dangerously high
And the predictions are that we are at least two weeks away from any kind of peak…
What can you do to protect your family?
Encourage your kids to wear a mask in school, wear a mask when in public, and practice social distancing when possible, avoiding crowded situations.
And of course, you should get a COVID vaccine if you are eligible, which is everyone who is at least 12 years old who doesn’t have a contraindication.
More on COVID-19
- 7 Things to Know About COVID-19
- The Truth About COVID-19 Vaccines
- What to Do if You Have Been Exposed to COVID-19
- What to Do if You Have Been Diagnosed with COVID-19
- Returning to Sports After Having COVID-19
- How Long Are You Contagious When You Have COVID-19?
- Are Kids Dying With COVID-19?
- Who Are the Real COVID-19 Experts?
- Why There is Still So Much COVID-19 Confusion
- UT Health COVID Dashboard
- Rockwall County COVID Trends
- Texas COVID-19 Data
- Texas Hospitals COVID Dashboard
- North Texas COVID Data Dashboard
- UT Austin COVID-19 Modeling Consortium
- Find COVID-19 Vaccines Near You
- CDC – Delta Variant: What We Know About the Science
- CDC – Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People