Bell County health leaders warn of alarming incidence rates
BELTON, Texas (KWTX)-- Bell County will not challenge Governor Abbot’s order banning mask mandates, according to Bell County Judge David Blackburn.
In a press conference Thursday Blackburn and several medical professionals and county leaders provided an update on the status of COVID-19 in the county.
As of yesterday Bell County had 1664 active cases and the total COVID-19 death toll had risen to 472, according to Nikki Morrow, Interim director of the Bell County Public Health District. 34% of eligible Bell County residents age 12 or older have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
As of August 11, the county had an average of 435 active COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people. In July the incidence rate was an average of 35 active cases for every 100,00 people.
Representatives from hospitals within Bell County confirmed that COVID-19 is overwhelming their hospital systems.
“For the entire month of August our hospitals have been above the 15 percent threshold for COVID patients in their facilities,” Blackburn said.
As of Thursday, 1/3 of the beds at Baylor Scott & White are occupied by COVID-19 patients, according to Dr. Stephen Sibbit, the Chief Medical Officer for the Temple Region of Baylor Scott and White.
Other hospital systems like Seton Medical and McLane Children’s Hospital also report an increase in COVID-19 patients and an increase in children and pregnant women falling victim to the virus.
Morrow said in light of the COVID-19 surge and the new Delta variant her team has been frequently meeting with school superintendent to advise them on safety measures as the approach the new school year.
School districts, under Governor Gregg Abbott’s executive order GA-38 cannot require students, staff or visitors to wear masks during the school year. Local government entities are also forbidden from having mask mandates. Some Texas counties like Dallas County have enacted mask mandates in defiance of that order. Some school districts like Austin ISD have done the same.
Blackburn said Bell County has no plans to defy the order.
“I took an oath of office to uphold the law when I took this office. And the governor’s orders are the laws of the state. So we’re going to continue doing everything we can working with health care professionals and using every resource we have within that order to keep the community safe,” Blackburn said.
The county and hospital leaders say they have requested through the state for additional health care personnel to be brought to Bell County. Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Wednesday that the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has arranged for the deployment of more than 2,500 medical personnel to help hospitals care for the increasing number of COVID-19 patients across Texas.
Most of the hospital systems in the county have recently mandated that their employees take the COVID-19 vaccine in order to keep their employment. The decisions have drawn some backlash from some healthcare workers who say their freedom to choose is being breached. Calee Travis, the Chief Nursing Officer for Seton Medical in Harker Heights Thursday called on those health care workers to get the vaccine.
“I just want to appeal to the nurses who think their rights are being taken away,” Travis said. “Just think about what you learned in school. About the basic transmittance of a virus.”
As COVID-19 cases continue to surge, hospital leaders warn people to not visit the emergency rooms to obtain COVID-19 tests. They say residents should get testing at pharmacies and other sites so as to leave hospital workers free to handle COVID-19 patients and other emergencies.
Meanwhile, Blackburn and other county leaders recognize that free testing availability is lacking. Bell County closed its free COVID-19 test sites earlier this year. Walgreens and CVS now remain some of the only free testing sites in the county. Hospitals and other locations where COVID-19 tests are available can and do charge a fee.
County and health leaders continue to urge the public to get the COVID-19 vaccine as the quickest way to stop the spread of COVID-19. Click here to find a vaccination site near you.
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