Texas Medical Center ICU capacity returns to Phase 1 levels as COVID-19 hospitalizations decline

The Texas Medical Center has fewer patients in intensive care units this week, allowing officials to step back some measures as COVID-19 hospitalization numbers continue to decline, according to the center's daily data dashboard update Aug. 2.

A total of 1,324 ICU beds are occupied across the TMC's member institutions in nine counties, below the 1,330 threshold that necessitates additional staffing and beds as outlined in the medical center’s Phase 2 plan, which initially took effect July 1. It will remain at Phase 1 status if ICU use stays flat or continues to decline.

Of those patients using ICU equipment, 569 of them have COVID-19, a 17% drop since July 27.

New daily hospitalizations attributed to COVID-19 have declined 3.8% in the last seven days, with 205 new patients reported Aug. 2, down from a peak of 446 new cases in TMC hospitals reported in early July.

TMC hospitals discharged 1,826 patients recovering from COVID-19 in the last seven days, a 12% weekly increase. However, the TMC also saw 260 more COVID-19 patients die in the past last week, a week-over-week increase of 17%, bringing the total to 1,534.

As a result, the number of active COVID-19 patients in TMC institutions is down to 1,644 on Aug. 3 from 2,060 on July 27.

This comes as the Greater Houston area saw 2,659 new COVID-19 cases Aug. 1 in the nine counties where the TMC has a member institution hospital, numbers seen previously in mid-July. The data was pulled from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and includes case counts from Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller counties.