Halfway through June, Hays County recorded an average of 36 daily cases of COVID-19, and two weeks later, the daily average jumped to 150. Several culprits contributed to this shift, putting the county at a higher rate than its more densely populated neighbor, Travis County.
After phase three of reopening on June 12, daily cases climbed exponentially. State Rep. for House District 45, Erin Zwiener and Dr. Manish Naik, an Internal Medicine Physician and Pandemic Specialist at Austin Regional Clinic, shared why they believe coronavirus cases are on the rise. Multiple factors come to play, including decreased state regulations, expanded testing capacity and increased socialization with looser control. But as cases increase all over Texas, where is the state headed and what can be done to decrease infections?
Both Zwiener and Naik pointed out that increased testing played a role in seeing the rise of infections, and that Hays County did not have enough tests in May, according to Zwiener. But Naik said that not long ago, the community rates of positive cases were running at five to six percent. Over the last few days, depending on the community demographic, the positive rate is between 15 to 30 percent.
