TARRANT COUNTY (WBAP/KLIF)- Tarrant County Public Health (TCPH) will now begin reporting all COVID-19 cases reported to the county, including pending COVID-19 cases that have been confirmed by lab reports.
“Until now, we have only been reporting confirmed cases, but as the numbers in Tarrant County continue to increase, we want to provide the public with as much information as possible about the spread of COVID-19 in our communities,” said TCPH Director of Public Health Vinny Taneja. “These people have been lab confirmed to have COVID-19 but we have not had the chance to investigate and verify all the demographic information to make sure they are all Tarrant County residents or if the city on the lab report is the exact city they live,” said Taneja.
Tarrant County Public Health today reported a total of 155 confirmed cases on their website. In addition to that number an additional 83 provisional cases. Those cases will now be included so that the news media and the public will have a better idea of what is happening in the county from a reported cases standpoint.
“The health and safety of all Tarrant County residents is our number one priority,” Taneja said. “We want to be as transparent and open as possible, while also protecting the privacy and health information of everyone involved.”
Taneja said the county’s effort on social distancing has helped.
“There’s no crystal ball of what’s going to happen here in Tarrant County but the trend looks hopeful that we are seeing a slow curve, what we expected of bending the epidemic curve,” he said.
COVID-19 causes respiratory illness with cough, fever, and shortness of breath, and may lead to bronchitis and severe pneumonia. The United States now has more than 122,000 reported cases of COVID-19. Tarrant County Public Health reminds everyone to continue to follow basic preventive measures to protect from COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses. These include:
- Stay home as much as possible and practice social distancing by staying six feet away from others when you do go out. Avoid gatherings of more than 10 people.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Stay home when you are sick. If you have trouble breathing, or a persistent fever, call your primary care provider.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or your sleeve.
- Frequently clean and disinfect touched objects and surfaces.
