Montgomery County passed the 15% threshold of hospital capacity occupied by COVID-19 patients on Aug. 7, according to the county’s dashboard. As of Aug. 8, 16.2% of hospital capacity is occupied by COVID-19 patients. Out of the county’s 174 available intensive care unit beds, 170 are currently occupied, the county's Aug. 9 update said.
According to Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order GA-34, if the COVID-19 hospitalization percentage reaches 15% and stays above that mark for seven days, the county will be considered in a state of “high hospitalization” and authorities could put stricter COVID-19 mitigation measures into effect.
Montgomery County currently has 5,480 active cases, up from 4,838 recorded on Aug. 6. The last time the county recorded over 5,000 active cases was in February.
The county’s vaccination rate is currently 49%. County officials continue to stress vaccination.
“The vast majority of new cases and essentially all hospitalizations are in those who are unvaccinated," stated the Montgomery County news release accompanying the Aug. 9 update.
Of the new cases recorded since Aug. 6, 95 are under the age of 12 and are not eligible to be vaccinated. Over 2,100 children in that age group countywide have tested positive for COVID-19 in 2021.
