Wednesday Update: 25 New, 10 Backlogged COVID-19 Cases Reported in Comal County

Comal County reported 25 new cases of COVID-19 today and added another 10 backlogged cases to its database.

Seventeen are confirmed, 16 are probable and two are suspect cases, the county said in a statement. Total cases for the county is now 9,942.

There are now 219 active, confirmed-and-probable cases of the virus in the county. Of those, 12 are hospitalized.

Another 26 recoveries were reported, for a total of 9,411.

The seven-day molecular positivity rate for Wednesay is 9.69%. The seven-day antigen positivity rate is 5.57%. The Trauma Service Area (TSA) P percentage for Thursday is 3.96%.

On Wednesday, Comal County hospitals reported caring for 13 COVID-19 patients. Of those, four are in intensive care and three are on ventilators. Not all of these patients are necessarily county residents. Not all county residents hospitalized with COVID-19 are in county hospitals.

Location Breakdown of New Cases

• New Braunfels – 16
• North of Canyon Lake – 3
• South of Canyon Lake – 4
• South Comal County (Garden Ridge) – 4
• Bulverde/Spring Branch – 8
• Fair Oaks – 0

Age Range of New Cases

• Under 20 – 11
• 20s – 15
• 30’s/40’s – 12
• 50s/60s – 4
• 70 and older – 3

Testing Information

As of Wednesday morning, Public Health reports

• 76,209 tests conducted
• 5,258 confirmed cases
• 4,661 probable cases
• 23 suspect cases

Location Breakdown of All Cases

Of the 9,907 confirmed-and-probable COVID-19 cases, the location breakdown is:

• New Braunfels (includes Eastern and Central Comal) – 7,069
• Western Comal County (includes Bulverde and Spring Branch) – 1,460
• South of Canyon Lake – 579
• North of Canyon Lake – 459
• Southern Comal County (includes Garden Ridge and Schertz) –329
• Fair Oaks Ranch – 46

Vaccines

The Comal County COVID-19 vaccine standby list is open. All adults ages 18 and older who are interested in receiving a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine should visit mycomalcounty.com or check Comal County’s Facebook page for more information about the status of the list. Vaccines will be distributed to the public as they are received by Comal County and according to distribution guidelines established by the state. To find other vaccine providers, visit dshs.texas.gov/covidvaccine.

Those who do not have a computer or need assistance can call 830-620-5575.

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.