NET Health issues resolution in the face of COVID spike
(Henderson County is a part of the NET Health region. Henderson County Judge Wade McKinney provided an update on the county's COVID-19 status this week which you can find below.)
Press release
The NET Health Board of Directors has considered the substantial increase of COVID-19 cases that has occurred locally since July 1, 2021, which is due in large part to the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant and has contributed to the stress being experienced by area hospitals treating the sick in our community, COVID-related and otherwise.
Although there has been a recent local uptick in COVID-19 vaccinations, the percentage of East Texans aged 12 years and higher who are fully vaccinated are generally 40 percent or less, with some counties only around 33 percent.
To augment vaccinations, other preventive measures that should be taken include (a) the use of face coverings in public settings, (b) staying home when sick, (c) good hygiene practices, and (d) social distancing. A combination of these mitigation efforts is imperative in order to relieve the burden of disease in our local community.
On Thursday, September 2, 2021, the NET Health Board of Directors passed a Resolution that includes focused recommendations that embody the NET Health mission to Prevent Illness, Promote Health, and Protect Our Communities:
PART 1: To help counteract the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, the NET Health Board of Directors recommends all eligible persons obtain the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible.
PART 2: To help counteract the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, the NET Health Board of Directors strongly recommends Schools utilize face coverings for all individuals on campus and at School-related activities, as long as this area remains in the moderate to substantial benchmark per the COVID-19 Community Spread Level document for the NET Health Jurisdiction.
PART 3: To help counteract the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, and in accordance with current Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, the NET Health Board of Directors recommends local businesses strongly encourage masking for customers 2 years of age and older and for employees, except while eating or drinking, as long as this area remains in the moderate to substantial benchmark per the COVID-19 Community Spread Level document for the NET Health Jurisdiction.
PART 4: Per Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, the NET Health Board of Directors recommends and strongly encourages that all members of the public stay home when they are sick, practice social distancing as much as possible, and quarantine and get tested after having known close-contact exposure to a person infected with COVID-19.
Within the below COVID-19 Community Spread Level infographic, the mathematical average of all COVID-positive cases (this includes all positive PCR tests and all positive antigen tests) from the previous seven days is divided by the population of the county; that answer is multiplied by 100,000, and the final number is the 7-Day Rolling Rate.
The infographic above illustrates that, over the past 7 days, there is an average of 112 different residents every day who are testing positive for COVID-19 in Smith County.
In the past week, the daily average in Anderson County is 70 residents, 81 different residents each day in Henderson County, 77 residents in Van Zandt County, 82 residents in Rains County, 122 residents in Wood County, and 117 residents in Gregg County.
The 7-Day Rolling Rate for all seven counties that is pictured is currently at an all-time high.