An additional 2,704 new cases were confirmed on Friday, Oct. 2, the second time the daily count exceeded 2,000 since mid-September.
However, many of the newly added cases in the city of Houston had specimen dates from two weeks ago or longer, according to updates from the Houston Health Department. Of the 2,518 new cases confirmed in Houston on Oct. 2, only 8%, or 210, had specimen dates within the past two weeks.
Similarly, of the 743 new cases added Oct. 3 in Houston, 251 had specimen dates from the past two weeks. Of the 337 confirmed Oct. 4, 214 had specimen dates from the past two weeks.
Case counts in Harris County outside of the city were smaller over that time, and it was not immediately clear how many new cases, if any, had specimen dates from beyond the past two weeks. The Harris County Public Health Department confirmed 186, 321 and 173 new cases were confirmed Oct. 2, Oct. 3 and Oct. 4, respectively.
Meanwhile, testing positivity rates and COVID-19 hospitalizations stayed largely flat in Harris County. The 14-day rolling average for testing positivity was at 6.2% as of the most recent data Sept. 26, unchanged over the past two days. The 6.2% rate is the lowest the 14-day average has been since the county began tracking it in March.
The number of COVID-19 patients in Harris County hospitals was at 477 as of Oct. 4, according to the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council. The number of patients in general wards was at 316 on Oct. 4, down from 332 one week ago on Sept. 27. The number of patients in intensive care units was at 161 on Oct. 4, down from 171 on Sept. 27.
The total number of COVID-19 cases in Harris County now stands at 147,808, including 20,039 active cases, 125,801 recovered cases and 1,963 deaths.
