Is it time to mask up again in Tarrant County? Threat from COVID, RSV, flu may convince you.

The triple threat of COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza ought to cautiously convince us to mask up. For the elderly and the immunocompromised, it might be a no-brainer.

A physician from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told the U.S. News & World Report early this week that the country has seen higher infections of the flu and RSV. The physician said 47 jurisdictions – including Texas – reported “very high” or “high” levels of influenza-like illness, compared to 37 jurisdictions last month.

Add to that Tarrant County’s COVID community level assessment by the CDC is “medium,” and there are reasons to be cautious.

Gov. Greg Abbott did lift mask mandates early last year. Abbott’s order also rescinded restrictions on capacity for businesses – leaving it to companies to determine the health threat in their shops.

But should we mask up again?

The American Heart Association is telling readers of its website to mask up for the cold and flu season as the COVID threat lingers. According to a New England Journal of Medicine report, heart attacks are also more likely a week after a flu diagnosis.

To prevent infection, they recommended:

• Wearing a mask

• Avoid crowded indoor spaces

• Eat right

• Avoid touching your face

• Be careful about what you touch in public.

The CDC guidance for masking is based on COVID community levels:

• LOW – People can choose to mask up at any time. It is recommended when taking indoor public transportation.

• MEDIUM – Mask up if you are in a high risk group and if anyone in your household or social circle is in a high risk group.

• HIGH – Wear a high quality mask or respirator. If you are in a high risk group, avoid non-essential pubic indoor activities

Threat of infections in Texas is growing

Flu season in Texas got an early start this year, and according to health officials, is not showing signs of abating.

“I don’t think I’ve seen that in a long time on our flu map,” Vinny Taneja, director of Tarrant County Public Health, told the Star-Telegram in November.

Statewide, almost 8% of patients seeking care in outpatient clinics had flu-like symptoms, according to data from the state health department. This metric, which looks at “influenza-like illness,” is the one that most public health officials rely on to indicate how many people are showing up to doctors’ offices with fevers, coughs and sore throats.

“It is significantly higher than what we saw at this point in the last few years,” said Dr. Jennifer Shuford, the interim commissioner of the Department of State Health Services.

RSV infections have also been on the rise in Texas, sending thousands of babies and toddlers to hospitals.

But it isn’t just impacting kids — older adults, and adults with chronic disease, are also getting severely ill from RSV. This year’s RSV hospitalization rate for older adults is 10 times higher than usual at this point in the season, per the CDC.

“This is just the beginning of the surge, so we expect to see a lot of older adults hospitalized and dying, and it’s really important for people to know that while it’s incredibly serious in little kids and really scary, it also impacts older adults,” said Lindsay Clarke, vice president of the Alliance for Aging Research.