Weekly health report notes 2 new deaths, 400 new COVID-19 cases, 28 in hospital

In the Amarillo Department of Public Health's (APHD) weekly totals, active cases of influenza and COVID-19 increased from the previous week's reports, while 28 people were hospitalized with three patients in the ICU. By the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) standards, Potter and Randall counties' community levels of COVID-19 were low, or green, as of Thursday.

Flu update

The health department's weekly flu report is created by all the local providers who voluntarily report influenza to APHD in Potter and Randall Counties. Previous weekly flu reports can be found on the health department's website. Data is categorized by week, starting with Oct. 16. The season's highest total thus far was during the week of Dec. 12, when there were a total of 2,388 flu and flu-like cases of illness reported.

For the week reported Feb. 9, there were 14 cases of influenza A, 31 cases of influenza B and 431 cases of flu-like illness, according to the flu report card. Fifteen cases were classified as "undifferentiated," for a weekly total of 491. The previous week's total was 375.

"We are continuing to decline in positive influenza reported," APHD notes with the update. "We did have 17 positive RSV cases reported, which is pretty consistent with last week's report."

COVID-19 update

In the department's weekly COVID-19 update, 1,291 cases were considered active, with two new deaths and an increase of 400 new COVID-19 cases.

According to the report card, the 400 COVID-19 cases amount to a seven-day, new-case average of 57, with a seven-day positivity rate of 16%, bringing the total number of cases in Potter and Randall counties to 89,394 and the total number of deaths to 1,324 since the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, according to the report card.

The report card contains the latest data from BSA Health System, Northwest Texas Healthcare System, and Thomas E. Creek VA Medical Center.

Data for recoveries and active cases by county were not available on the newly updated APHD site. According to the site, there have been a total of 681,155 tests administered locally since the beginning of the pandemic. Potter County's total cases since the start of the pandemic rose to 42,986, with 781 deaths related to the virus. Randall County's total COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic rose to 46,408, with 543 deaths related to the virus, according to the site Friday.

Hospitalization report and more

The Amarillo Public Health COVID-19 Hospitalization report, also being released weekly on the report card, noted 28 COVID-19 patients hospitalized, 68% of whom were unvaccinated. Of those, three patients were in the ICU, all of whom were unvaccinated, and no one on a ventilator. The total deaths rose to 553, 81 percent of whom were unvaccinated.

The Amarillo Public Health Department is encouraging residents to take advantage of the opportunity to receive free vaccines and boosters before it is too late.

On Jan. 30, the White House announced its intent to end the national emergency and public health declarations related to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, a news release notes: "The emergency declarations have allowed major changes throughout the health care system, including the free distribution of vaccines and boosters, testing and treatments. In addition, telehealth services were expanded, and Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) were extended to millions more Americans. Beneficiaries enrolled in traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage could also receive free athome Covid tests and treatments and pay no cost-sharing. Ending the emergency declarations will have a significant impact on the health services provided to fight the pandemic, and Americans will need to start paying for Covid tests and treatments."

Everyone ages 6 months and older should stay up-to-date with COVID-19 vaccines, including receiving the latest booster when eligible to prevent severe illness, hospitalization and death; it is also the best way to prevent symptoms of long COVID, the health department says. For the latest COVID-19 information or to find vaccine locations, visit www.AmarilloAlerts.com. Weekly flu reports can be found at www.amarillopublichealth.org .

According to the Amarillo Public Health Department, boosters maximize protection against COVID and its contagious variants, such as the Omicron variant and the newest variant XBB1.5, which was recently named as “the most transmissible” by the World Health Organization. Everyone ages 6 months and older is best protected when they are up-to-date on their vaccines, which means they have received all recommended doses for people their age.

Upcoming mobile vaccine clinics include Friday, Feb. 17 at 10 a.m. at the Guyon Saunders Resource Center; Thursday, March 9 at 6 p.m. at Salvation Army; and Friday, March 17 at 10 a.m. at the Guyon Saunders Resource Center. Nurses will be available at the mobile clinics to answer health-related questions. Free COVID vaccinations are also available at the Amarillo Public Health Department, 850 Martin Road. Learn more, including how to schedule a free ride to the Amarillo Public Health Department, at www.AmarilloAlerts.com/findavaccine.

For the complete report of all Amarillo Public Health COVID-19 data, visit https://amarillo-public-health-covid-19-information-amarillo.hub.arcgis.com/.

Editor's note: Some of the numbers surrounding COVID-19 cases listed in this story are different on the weekly report card, vs. the APHD website. According to the public health department, readers can check the website for the latest updates and totals.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo weekly health update notes 400 new COVID-19 cases, 491 flu