The number of new COVID-19 cases in Texas exploded on Monday, with more than 10,000 people infected. The Texas Department of State Health Services reports small numbers on most Mondays, but today's report rivaled the pandemic's worst days from January and February.
The light numbers are often a reflection of low weekend testing and hospital admissions, but not this last weekend. With a week before Christmas, Texas reported 8,989 confirmed infections — the most since Feb. 1. It also said 1,623 probable cases were in the state.
Historically, the Monday numbers lead to a doubling or tripling of cases on Tuesday. These numbers come after Texas snapped 22 consecutive weeks of Monday-Tuesday cases, rising by more than 100%. On Dec. 7, cases rose by 25%, and last week, they fell by negative-4% — the first negative numbers since June. 1.
Those Tuesday numbers have been an important bellwether for the state because it demonstrates the rise in cases. In 2021, there are four instances where Monday-Tuesday numbers have been in the red, including last week. If anything, we could see another huge day for infections Tuesday — based on the 2021 numbers.
On Sunday, Methodist Hospital in Houston warned that they were running out of room, especially in the intensive care unit. Dr. Wesley Long, who heads Methodist Hospital's microbiology department, tweeted Sunday that 82% of symptomatic cases were the omicron variant of COVID-19.
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See @drswlong's post on Twitter.
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On Monday, the Texas Department of State Health Services said more than 3,000 hospitalizations — a number that has held steady for two weeks.
In Kerr County, DSHS said 171 people had active infections. Peterson Regional Medical Center said it had three hospitalized, and 11 new cases. Data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said Peterson was still facing nearly-full conditions, including in the intensive care unit.
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