HEALTH CARE AustinPublic Health raises COVID-19 risk level to Stage 5
LAKE TRAVIS-WESTLAKE COVID-19 DATA
RECENTLY REPORTED
BY BENTON GRAHAM
A seven-day moving average of more than 50 new hospital admis- sions is considered Stage 5. The Austin-Travis County area has been above that level since Dec. 31. The Travis County positivity rate is also within Stage 5 threshold, sitting at 29.7% as of Jan. 5. The Stage 5 guidance means the vaccinated population should wear masks during low-risk gatherings with people outside of their house- hold and avoid high-risk activities. According to an APH official, fully vaccinated people include those who have received both doses of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine or the single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Anyone not fully vaccinated should avoid travel and gatherings with people outside their household altogether in addition to opting for takeaway and curbside dining and shopping, health officials said. Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin-Travis County health authority, said while the omicron variant does seem to be causing more breakthrough infections for people who are fully vaccinated or boosted, vaccination is still a critical defense. “It is important that we continue to get vaccinated to protect our- selves from getting [a] severe disease to protect us from having to go back into the hospital and to protect those of us who are vulnerable to severe disease and death.” As hospitalizations have increased, ventilator use has not increased to the
From Dec. 1-29, the ZIP code with the most new cases of COVID-19 in the Lake- Travis-Westlake area was 78746 with 133 cases. Less populated ZIP code 78733 had the fewest new cases with 31.
Austin Public Health officials announced Jan. 6 the agency is shifting its risk-based guidelines from Stage 4 to Stage 5 for the Austin-Tra- vis County area. The change comes as the omicron variant has quickly spread through- out the area, and APH key indicators have shifted into Stage 5 thresholds. “Now we’ve been here before. We know what works, and we know what to do. I’m also aware that we are all tired, and we want to be done with this virus,” Mayor Steve Adler said during a Jan. 6 press conference. “So we really need each of you to be even more vigilant to take even more vigi- lant action to protect our community, our workforce and our economy.”
52
78669 78726 78730 78732 78733 78734 78735 78738 78746
76
41
76
31
90
126
121
133
CUMULATIVE COVID-19 CASES
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the nine ZIP codes in the Lake Travis- Westlake area have had a total of 12,079 COVID-19 cases, which account for about 9% of total Travis County cases, which was 134,684 as of Jan. 5.
732
78669 78726 78730 78732 78733 78734 78735 78738 78746
1,104
CONCERNED ABOUT COVID-19?
571
1,292
535
While the Austin-Travis County area is in Stage 5: FULLY VACCINATED RESIDENTS SHOULD: • wear masks during gatherings with people outside their household • avoid high-risk activities PARTIALLY AND UNVACCINATED RESIDENTS SHOULD: • avoid travel • not gather with people outside their households • use curbside and takeout options for shopping and dining
1,757
1,788
2,233
2,067
SOURCE: AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
same extent. As of Jan. 5, the ven- tilator use seven-day average in the community was 25—a figure similar to the 24.7 of Dec. 5. The ICU admission seven-day moving average has increased, reaching 61.7 on Jan. 5. That number is the highest in the community since Oct. 23.
Walkes said it is too early in the surge to draw conclusions about the severity of illness in the current wave. “It’s very early in our surge, and we are still collecting that data to see if indeed we will have less need for those higher-level care resources,” Walkes said.
SOURCE: AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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LAKE TRAVIS - WESTLAKE EDITION • JANUARY 2022
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