New Texas COVID-19 Cases, Deaths Below State Average

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — State health officials reported below-average new COVID-19 case and death totals for Texas on Thursday.

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported 3,177 new cases, which was below the state’s seven-day rolling average of 3,314 as computed by Johns Hopkins University researchers. That pushed the state’s pandemic total increased to 3,022,708 with the addition of 1,522 previously unreported COVID-19 cases. The state estimated 65,587 were active.

Researchers said the rolling average of daily new cases over the past two weeks held steady at 3,314 per day, and that 170 new Texas cases per 100,000 people over the past two weeks ranked 38th in the nation for new cases per capita.

The 92 deaths were fewer than the Johns Hopkins average for Texas of 95 per day as the state’s pandemic death toll rose to 49,017.

More than 8.6 million people have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, about 30% of the population, and more than 5 million people have been fully vaccinated, almost 18% of the population.