COVID-19 Update
Bowie County Emergency Operations Center reports 13 new cases since Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020 for a total of 2,356 positive COVID-19 cases, with 88 deaths. The Department of State Health Services is reporting 1,699 recoveries. There are currently 569 active cases in Bowie County.
Cass County added 1 new case and currently has 656 total, with 546 of those recovered, and 32 fatalities. Cass County currently has 78 active cases.
A joint statement was issued last week by Wadley Regional Medical and Christus St. Michael Health System asking the public to adhere to protocol due to the increased incidence of COVID-19 infections in Texarkana and the surrounding communities which can be read here in its entirety:
COVID-19 continues to be a major health risk, and CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System and Wadley Regional Medical Center are asking for your help again in this ongoing battle to slow the spread of this virus. We are seeing an increased incidence of COVID-19 infections in Texarkana and the surrounding communities.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have urged those in our community to protect themselves, their neighbors and their loved ones amidst the worst global health crisis in generations. After months of physical distancing and staying at home, infections and deaths began to decline. But, as we reopened, some of the steps that were critical to slowing the spread have been relaxed. As a result, we are now experiencing a real-time uptick in COVID-19 cases.
As your community hospitals, we are committed to providing great care to all who come seeking it, but we remain vigilant in working to make sure our staff has the needed resources and to keep them safe as they provide that much needed care. Each day, it seems as though we are experiencing an increasing number of coronavirus cases and continued high numbers of hospitalizations both locally and throughout our country. We implore you to take the simple steps we know will help stop the spread of the virus:
Wear a Face Mask
Wash your Hands often
Social Distance
We also encourage people who have fully recovered from COVID-19 for at least two weeks to consider donating plasma, which may help save the lives of other patients. Convalescent plasma may contain antibodies to help fight against COVID-19.
The toll of this pandemic is already staggering, and it will take many more months, perhaps years, to truly understand its impact on our country and our way of life. But what is certain – and what the science and evidence are telling us – is that COVID-19 is not behind us and we must resist confusing re-opening with returning to normalcy. Doing so can escalate this crisis and result in more suffering and death.
We are not powerless in this public health crisis, and we can defeat it in the same way we defeated previous threats to public health—by allowing science and evidence to shape our decisions and inform our actions. There is only one way we will get through this – together.
Thank you for joining us to keep our community safe and healthy.
Gov. Greg Abbott Tuesday, Nov. 10, announced that the State of Texas has prepared allocation plans to swiftly distribute medicines and vaccines that are now becoming available to treat COVID-19—the first day of what will be many announcements in the coming weeks about the availability of medicines and vaccines to combat COVID-19.
On Monday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the immediate use of the first medical treatment developed for people who contract COVID-19. An antibody drug by Eli Lilly & Co., called bamlanivimab, has been shown to improve the symptoms of people who contract the virus and prevent hospitalizations.
The FDA said the drug is authorized for patients at high risk of progressing to severe COVID-19, including people 65 and older, or who have certain pre-existing medical conditions.
Lilly is expected to immediately ship approximately 80,000 doses across the country, including Texas, at no cost to the states. Lilly should have up to one million doses by the end of the year.
Similar to the Lilly antibody treatment, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. also has requested FDA emergency use authorization of its own COVID-19 antibody medical treatment to treat patients before they become seriously ill and aid in reducing hospitalizations, with an announcement of the FDA’s decision expected soon. This is the same antibody drug that President Donald Trump took to quickly recover from COVID-19 last month.
The federal government has agreed to buy hundreds of thousands of doses of the two new treatment drugs and will be in charge of allocating supplies to the states, which will in turn determine distribution to hospitals and healthcare facilities. It is likely that the doses will be allocated to states and U.S. territories based on their share of hospitalized and infected patients.
These medical treatments are in addition to the announcement yesterday by Pfizer that its COVID-19 vaccine candidate achieved incredible success in an early analysis — demonstrating over 90% efficacy in preventing COVID-19. It is expected to become available as soon as late November.
The State of Texas has already prepared to distribute the COVID-19 vaccines and medical treatments.
The Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has already developed a Vaccine Distribution Plan and is working with health care providers to enroll in their Immunization Program to be eligible to administer these vaccines once available. Over 2,500 providers have already enrolled in the program. DSHS formed an Expert Vaccine Allocation Panel to develop vaccine allocation strategies.
The Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) is prepared to assist the swift distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. In late October, TDEM hosted the State of Texas COVID-19 Vaccine Virtual Tabletop Exercise – over 1,000 local, state, federal, and non-governmental organization partners came together to test the state’s vaccine support plan, understand its operational procedures, and examine their roles and responsibilities.
“Swift distribution of vaccines and medical treatments will begin to heal those suffering from COVID-19, slow the spread of the virus, and aid in reducing hospitalizations of Texans,” said Governor Abbott. “As we anticipate the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments, the State of Texas is prepared to quickly distribute those medicines to Texans who voluntarily choose to use them.”
Through the end of the year, free testing will be offered Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. at Texarkana-Bowie County Family Health Center at 902 W. 12th Street, Texarkana, TX 75501. There are no requirements for testing (residency included), oral swab with results in 48-96 hours, and pre-registration available at www.gogettested.com.
The latest local information and updates can all be found at www.coronatxk.org. The local hotline telephone number is (903) 255-5560.