Texas DSHS updates grim death toll data for Kerr County

The confusion over Kerr County's death toll continued to mount on Tuesday after the Texas Department of State Health services surpassing what Peterson Regional Medical Center was reporting.

However, the numbers still don't seem to reconcile deaths at the Kerrville hospital.

Peterson said it had one death on Aug. 4-5 and three deaths over the weekend of Aug 14-15. DSHS reported there were three deaths on Aug. 12. It revised a death report from Aug. 7 to Aug. 6. DSHS reported single deaths on Aug. 16, 18 and 21.

The August death toll is now 11 — if the data is accurate.

The Lead previously reported five deaths at Peterson but revising that number down to four after another review of the data.

The Aug. 12 death toll was only the third time DSHS reported three more deaths in a single day since Jan. 8, and the second time since Dec. 30, when it said four Kerr County residents died.

Peterson Regional Medical Center's COVID-19 hospitalizations fell to 31 on Tuesday — one day after hitting an August peak of 34.

A report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services illustrated the situation at hospitals across the country, including in Kerrville. Hospitals must submit the information weekly, and Peterson's seven-day average of staffed intensive care unit beds was 11 with a rolling average of four COVID-19 patients per day

Peterson has had as many as eight people in intensive care at one time. At least five people have died from COVID-19 at Peterson in August. Peterson reported 28 new cases of the virus on Tuesday.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott took to Twitter to suggest the Delta variant of COVID-19 is beginning to wane. Citing stats showing that the positivity rate has declined over the last two weeks, Abbott wrote that the worst might be behind the state.

However, data may not be clear because of the multitude of testing options — including those over the counter.