SAN ANTONIO – Editor’s Note: Watch the entire briefing in the video player above. Newsletter recipients can click here to access the video.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff updated the community about the local response to COVID-19 in their daily briefing Wednesday night.
Here are a few of the highlights:
- Nirenberg reported 2,525 COVID-19 cases and 70 deaths in Bexar County, as of Wednesday. Seven cases are from the community, and 13 are from congregate settings.
- City officials also reported that 92 patients are hospitalized, 39 are in the intensive care unit and 19 are on ventilators.
- Nirenberg said there is a slight uptick in the number of local COVID-19 hospitalizations, but the progress indicators from the Health Transition Team are all headed in the right direction. He said the doubling rate is now every 36 days, the positivity rate has gone down and local hospitals are in good shape. “We do not want to lose this edge,” Wolff said, adding that there are 1.35 cases per 1,000 people in Bexar County.
WATCH: Leaders discuss Bexar County’s COVID-19 standing compared to other Texas metros
- Nirenberg said the area was spared from a great peak due to precautions taken early on during the pandemic, but if people don’t follow health guidelines, the city and county could reverse track. Dr. Anita Kurian, assistant director of the Metropolitan Health District, said Bexar County is doing well compared to other large Texas counties in terms of COVID-19 infections.
- The mayor reminded residents that two new walkup testing sites will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday to Saturday at San Antonio College and Highlands High School.
- Nirenberg said more than 6,400 businesses were helped today during a PPE supplies distribution event. The small businesses and nonprofits received pledge kits to help them reopen safely.
MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE FROM KSAT: