Comal County Reports 154 New, 810 Active Cases of COVID-19 Thursday

Comal County reported 154 new and 810 active cases of COVID-19 today.

Twenty-three of the new cases were reported in residents under the age of 20, including three infants under 12 months of age, the county said in a statement.

Comal County hospitals are now caring for 46 COVID-19 patients. Of those, nine are in intensive care and two are on ventilators. Of the 810 active, confirmed-and-probable cases added today, 21 are hospitalized.

Of the new cases reported today, 109 are confirmed and 45 are probable cases. Total cases reported since reporting began in 2020 now stands at 12,518. Another 34 recoveries were added, bringing the total recovered to 11,373. The total number of deceased remains 335.

The seven-day molecular positivity rate for Thursday is 14.29%. The seven-day antigen positivity rate is 9.29%. The TSA P percentage is 8.81%.

Not all patients in Comal County hospitals are necessarily county residents. Not all county residents hospitalized with COVID-19 are in Comal County hospitals.

Location Breakdown of New Cases

• New Braunfels – 99
• North of Canyon Lake – 15
• South of Canyon Lake – 12
• South Comal County (Garden Ridge) – 5
• Bulverde/Spring Branch – 22
• Fair Oaks – 1

Age Range of New Cases

• Under 20 – 23 (includes three infants under 12 months of age)
• 20s – 34
• 30’s/40’s – 55
• 50s/60s – 36
• 70 and older – 6

Testing Information

As of Thursday morning, Public Health reports

• 122,487 tests conducted
• 6,808 confirmed cases
• 5,686 probable cases
• 24 suspect cases

Location Breakdown of All Cases

Of the 12,518 confirmed-and-probable COVID-19 cases in Comal County, the location breakdown is:

• New Braunfels (includes Eastern and Central Comal) – 8,829
• Western Comal County (includes Bulverde and Spring Branch) – 1,811
• South of Canyon Lake – 755
• North of Canyon Lake – 626
• Southern Comal County (includes Garden Ridge and Schertz) – 440
• Fair Oaks Ranch – 57

Vaccinations

Comal County’s Public Health Department is now administering Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to those 18 years and older on Fridays and Pfizer vaccines for anyone 12 years and older on Thursdays.

Probable Cases

“Probable case” is a category established by the Texas Department of State Health Services to describe those who do not have a positive PCR test for COVID-19 but meet two of the three criteria:

• Meets clinical criteria and epidemiologic linkage with no confirmatory laboratory testing performed for SARS-CoV-2.
• Meets presumptive laboratory evidence, which is the detection of SARS-CoV-2 by antigen test in a respiratory specimen.
• Meets vital records criteria with no confirmatory laboratory evidence for SARS-CoV-2.

A probable case is treated identically to a confirmed case and counts toward the county’s positivity rate and total case tally.

Suspected Cases

A ‘suspect’ case meets supportive laboratory evidence with no prior history of being a confirmed or probable case. It is also counted toward the total case tally. Supportive laboratory evidence means:

• • Detection of a specific antibody in serum, plasma, or whole blood.
  • Detection of specific antigen by immunocytochemistry in an autopsy specimen.