Houston Health Authority speaks regarding rise in COVID-19 cases locally

COVID cases on the rise nationally

FOX 26's Tiffany Justice has more as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise across the country.

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas - On Thursday, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo spoke candidly about the state of the county during her annual address with
Covid-19 taking up much of the time.

Hidalgo said due to the lack of a comprehensive COVID-19 plan from state and federal governments, we are continuing to see increased cases.

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To get a sense of where things stand at the city level, FOX 26 spoke with Dr. David Persse with the Houston Health Department.

On Thursday, the department reported 834 new cases with a positivity rate at 6.9 percent.

“We’ve seen a lot of divisiveness. First, there was disbelief on the part of many people in the public, then it became a political issue. I think that history will reflect poorly on the United States for letting that happen, that really put us behind the curb,” said Persse.

Hidalgo said in the past few weeks, the county has seen a 40% increase in the number of cases with around 500 new cases per day. She added hospitalization rates are also going up and the positivity rate for the county is now nearly 9%.

Hidalgo blames COVID-19 being a perpetual issue for the region because of a lack of a comprehensive plan.

“What we do need is a very comprehensive strategy,” said Hidalgo. “A thresh-hold type base strategy that sets out parameters that are science based, that don’t pick and choose an indicator when that indicator happens to look better.”

And as we race towards a vaccine in President Trump’s Operation Warp Speed, trials are still asking for volunteers.

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UTHealth at Memorial Herman is looking for around 200 people to get involved, who are considered to be at high risk.

“We’re working very hard with our partners as best we can to make sure that when a vaccine and treatments come available, that all gets deployed,” said Hidalgo.

For more on trial:
For more information on this trial visit ClinicalTrials.gov, or email COVID19vaccinestudy@uth.tmc.edu.
To enroll in this trial visit https://www.coronaviruspreventionnetwork.org/clinical-study-volunteer/ (Site code: HART).