What you need to know to celebrate another holiday season amid an increase in COVID cases in El Paso
El Paso TimesNov 22, 2021
The Cotes were already packing up their car for a trip to
The
"We have a lot to be thankful about, especially if he doesn't develop any symptoms," she said. "And also because our baby tested negative."
With
Local families, many with school-aged children, are having to suddenly give a second thought to their plans to host or attend large family holiday gatherings.
Although 68.8% of residents 5 years and older are fully vaccinated,
The increase in cases is driven by three factors: unvaccinated residents, an increase in children testing positive at school and waning protection for those vaccinated more than six months ago.
More:
More: 'Our community embraces vaccines': How El Paso went from COVID-19 hotspot to 71% vaccination rate
On
More than 2,000 new COVID-19 infections were reported throughout the week, more than triple the number of weekly cases two months prior. The brunt of the new cases continues to be among people who are unvaccinated, according to city health officials.
According to the New York Times interactive COVID-19 dashboard, on
"Right now,
Equally troubling is an increase in infections among school children in some
"If we start hitting numbers like 700 or 800 (cases a day), our hospitals will be backed up," Samaniego said. "We don't have the personnel. There's been a huge turnover in health care workers, and some of them got very sick and didn't come back."
Across
The Hospitals of Providence East Campus, the Hospitals of Providence Transmountain Campus,
The Hospitals of Providence Memorial Campus and Kindred Hospital El Paso are in the mid to upper 80% capacity while El Paso Children's Hospital ICU is at 99.2% occupancy.
More: As ICU beds become scarce,
More: EPCC now offers COVID-19 third-dose, booster shots; here's how to get protected
More than one year ago,
There's still hope of avoiding another deadly surge in COVID-19 cases this holiday season. Health officials are urging residents to wear their masks indoors, wash their hands and practice social distancing, especially while traveling. They are encouraging others to get vaccinated if they hadn't already, get a booster shot, and test for COVID-19 if they feel symptomatic.
Samaniego also urged people to take care of their health, especially if they have underlying health conditions.
"(Let's) kill the dragons while they're babies, and right now the virus is the baby," Samaniego said. "If we get it quick, it won't spew fire and come at us. This is the moment to be able to do that."
COVID-19 cases rising among children, shutting down schools
The Cotes thought they had done everything right to protect their family.
Cote and her husband, who are both
"We were a very strict lockdown family," Cote said, whose 7-year-old son attends
On
Cote's son tested positive for COVID-19 days later. He had received his first dose of the children's vaccine more than a week contracting the virus.
Cote said she was surprised at first — she thought it was a false positive.
By
The EP Strong COVID-19 online dashboard reports more than 1,200 active coronavirus cases among children 12 years old and younger across the county, while more than 13,000 children are reported to have recovered.
As of
On
"We continue to promote health protocols: hand washing, social distancing when possible, and of course, students and families who choose to wear a face mask are more than welcome to do so in our classrooms, facilities and our offices," EPISD spokesperson
"We want them to stay safe. We want them to practice the best options for their families and for the rest of the community," he said.
More:
More: Canutillo ISD to close two schools Friday due to rising COVID-19 cases
The rise in cases isn't isolated to the EPISD.
How to protect yourself and loved ones from COVID-19 during the holidays
Testing plays an important role in protecting yourself and others from spreading COVID-19.
Dr.
More:
More: Binational community of
"Many people dismiss some mild symptoms as not being COVID, and unfortunately, that can lead to infection of many other people. There's plenty of other respiratory viruses circulating at this moment, which also makes it very complex," Ocaranza said. "That's why testing is extremely important, but preventing getting infected by receiving the vaccine ahead of those holidays is the best protection that we can have."
Ocaranza said contact tracing investigations show a combination of traveling, large family gatherings and in-person shopping as contributors to the recent increase in COVID-19 cases.
If you're having a family gathering on
•The smaller the gathering, the better;
•Try to hold gatherings outside if weather permits;
•Get tested for COVID-19 before and after large gatherings and travelling;
•Get a flu shot and/or booster shot, if you're eligible;
•Get vaccinated.
"Last year, we were the hottest spot in the nation and there's a lot of things that we need to be thankful for, Ocaranza said. "Everybody who's going to be celebrating this
Dr.
"I would say if you are with family members that you know are unvaccinated, tell them the truth," Mehta said. "Tell them what you're worried about; tell them that you would prefer for them to get tested, to be masked when you're spending time with them."
Mehta said there may have to be compromises made, "but there are things you can do to make sure that your family members can do to make sure that you're staying safe."
"Make sure that those (tests) are negative before you spend time around large groups of people," Mehta said. "I think that would be ideal, especially if you know there will be unvaccinated people there."
Mehta said the holidays can be the hardest for people feeling lonely. If there are family members who aren't joining festivities because they aren't comfortable being in another space with other people during a pandemic, give them a call.
"People are very sick of COVID," Mehta said. "Don't take that as a barrier to not reaching out to folks ... give them a call during dinner, Zoom them in. Try and keep them a part of it. Because, really, it's the loneliness that makes things worse for people."
COVID-19 data update
On
Officials said there have been 5,446 breakthrough cases. Of those, 317 patients required hospitalization, including 79 who were placed in intensive care and 22 on ventilators. There have been 37 breakthrough deaths.
For more information on COVID-19, including testing, vaccination, data and prevention, visit epstrong.org.
Where to get a COVID-19 vaccine
The city of
Convention center,
•Noon to
•8 a.m. to
City of El Paso Vaccine Mega Site,
•8 a.m. to noon and
•220
•9341 Alameda Ave.
•7380
•9566 Railroad Drive
A parent or guardian's consent will be needed for minors to be vaccinated. Parents can schedule an appointment or find more information about vaccination sites and locations at epcovidvaccine.com.
If you have questions about the city's COVID-19 vaccination sites or services, call 915-212-6843 or go to www.epcovidvaccine.com.
Where to get a COVID-19 test
Symptoms to look out for:
•Cough
•Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
•Fever
•Chills
•Repeated shaking with chills
•Muscle pain
•Headache
•Sore throat
•New loss of taste or smell
El Pasoans can get a rapid-result test or a nasal swab PCR test.
A list of locations offering rapid COVID-19 tests can be found online at https://tinyurl.com/yca5se8r.
Testing is free, and no appointments are required. The following locations can test for COVID-19 and the flu:
•Drive-thru testing will be
•Drive-thru and walk-up testing will be
•Drive-through testing will be
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