Austin health leaders preparing for alternate COVID-19 care sites, discussing mass casualty plans
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AUSTIN (KXAN) – At least 12 people have the Delta variant in Travis County, said Dr. Desmar Walkes in a virtual Travis County Commissioners Court on Tuesday.
Dr. Walkes said they are seeing a “rapid spread” of the Delta variant, mostly in unvaccinated people and in younger people who are not yet approved for vaccination. Nearly 20 percent of the people in Austin who are in intensive care with COVID-19 are under 30 years of age.
“We are at a crossroads,” said Dr. Walkes. “We are now planning alternative nursing visors.” She also said that the region’s health leaders are talking seriously about “planning mass accidents.”
Dr. Walkes said that of the nearly 690,000 people who have been fully vaccinated since Jan. 1 in Travis County, 623 people tested positive for COVID-19 despite being vaccinated. She stressed that getting the vaccine is still important, although we are seeing more breakthrough cases because of the Delta variant.
READ MORE: Medical Experts Call For COVID-19 Vaccine As Cases Of Unvaccinated People Are Rising Rapidly
“That’s a good success rate for our community, that’s what we need to get away from,” said Dr. Walkes. “The increase isn’t as important as the fact that the vaccine protects itself.”
Below are the latest University of Texas predictions for hospital admissions and critical care patients in the Austin-Round Rock area.
There are currently 227 people being hospitalized, according to Austin’s Covid-19 dashboard, updated Sunday. The 7-day moving average is 37, which means around 37 people are admitted to local hospitals every day. These statistic largely drives risk-based policies in the Austin-Travis County region.
RELATED: Counties near Austin Urge More Gun Shots, Reporting New COVID-19 Deaths
The level 5 risk-based guidelines would trigger when that 7-day moving average hits 50 or more. To return to level 3, the rolling 7-day average of new registrations would have to be below 30.
“This relentless surge has to stop,” said Dr. Walkes.
The Austin-Travis County area is currently in Level 4 risk-based guidelines, which urge unvaccinated individuals to avoid travel or shopping unless clearly necessary and with a mask. It also urges people who are vaccinated to mask themselves.
COVID-19: Risk-based guidelines with 7-day moving averages for new admissions from 07/26/2021 (Austin MSA)
The guidelines are unenforceable by Austin-Travis County due to an executive order signed by Governor Greg Abbott, but Dr. Walkes previously mentioned an individual call to action.
In the meantime, the CDC is expected to roll back some of its masking policies on Tuesday. A federal official speaking to the Associated Press anonymously said the agency would recommend vaccinated people wear masks indoors in parts of the country where the virus is rising.
Several cities across the country have already reintroduced their mask mandates this month, including Savannah, Georgia, and St. Louis.
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