BY TEXAS TRIBUNE STAFF MAY 22, 2020
As part of Gov. Greg Abbott‘s attempt to begin reviving the economy, myriad Texas businesses can reopen Friday. That includes bars, bowling alleys and aquariums at limited capacity. Restaurants can also operate at 50% capacity; they’ve been permitted to operate at 25% capacity since May 1.
What you need to know Friday:
- Texas reports 53,449 cases and 1,480 deaths
- Bars, bowling alleys and aquariums are among businesses that can now reopen
- Nearly $400 million in federal money coming to Texas nursing homes
- Abbott tells county and municipal jails they can’t open to most visitors
- Texas’ unemployment rate for April soars to highest monthly tally on record
- Lawsuit against Dallas County jail urges release of medically vulnerable inmates
Texas reports 53,449 cases and 1,480 deaths
Texas reported 1,181 more cases of the new coronavirus Friday, an increase of about 2% over the previous day, bringing the total number of known cases to 53,449. Hardeman County reported its first case Friday; over 85% of the state’s 254 counties have reported at least one case.
Harris County has reported the most cases, 10,283, followed by Dallas County, which has reported 8,273 cases. See maps of the latest case numbers for each county and case rates per 1,000 residents.
As of Thursday, at least 740,181 viral tests and 60,252 antibody tests have been administered.
The state has reported 40 additional deaths, bringing the statewide total to 1,480 — an increase of about 3% from Thursday. Harris County reported six additional deaths, bringing its total to 216 deaths, more than any other county.
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As of Friday, 1,578 patients are known to be hospitalized in Texas. That’s a decrease of 102 patients from Thursday. — Mandi Cai
More businesses — including bars, bowling alleys and aquariums — can reopen
As part of Gov. Greg Abbott‘s attempt to begin reviving the economy, myriad Texas businesses can reopen Friday. That includes bars, bowling alleys and aquariums at limited capacity. Restaurants can also operate at 50% capacity; they’ve been permitted to operate at 25% capacity since May 1. At bars, dancing and other close-contact interactions are discouraged, and customers should be seated at tables. For bowling alleys, bingo halls and roller skating rinks, customers must be kept 6 feet apart, including between bowling lanes and people playing bingo. Here is a full guide to the businesses that can reopen and the guidelines they must follow. — Clare Proctor
Texas’ unemployment rate hit 12.8% in April, worst monthly tally on record
The state’s April jobless rate was 12.8% — Texas’ worst monthly tally on record. Previously, the state’s worst-ever monthly unemployment rate was 9.2% in November 1986, as Texas reeled from the last big oil bust.
Although businesses are reopening, Gov. Greg Abbott‘s attempts to revive the economy will be hampered by the ongoing pandemic, experts say.
“The health thing is driving the economics,” said Keith Phillips, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
In explaining his rationale for allowing businesses to reopen, Abbott has zeroed in on two figures. One is the ratio of positive cases to tests conducted. The other is the hospitalization rate — the proportion of infected Texans who are requiring hospitalization.
Both those numbers have trended down over several weeks, but Texas is still often seeing 1,000 or more people test positive for the virus each day. — Mitchell Ferman
Top Tribune stories you might have missed:
- Data on tests changed: Texas health officials made a key change Thursday to how they report data about the coronavirus, distinguishing antibody tests from standard viral tests and prompting slight increases in the state’s oft-cited daily statistic known as the positivity rate. The Texas Department State of Health Services disclosed for the first time Thursday that as of a day earlier, it had counted 49,313 antibody tests as as part of its “total tests” tally. That represents 6.4% of the 770,241 total tests that the state had reported through Wednesday.
- Texans losing health insurance: More than 1 million Texans havelikely suffered the double whammy of losing their jobs and their employer-based health insurance. Some have landed in the state’s patchy health care safety net, where advocates say they could be cut off from physical and mental health services while facing the economic strain of a public health crisis.
“You can have zippo income right now and be out of food but not be able to get SNAP because the car you bought four years ago is still worth too much to qualify.”
— Rachel Cooper, a senior policy analyst with the Center for Public Policy Priorities
- SNAP applications increase: More than 417,000 Texans applied for the federal government’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program in April, a sharp increase over March and nearly quadruple the number of people who applied in April 2019.
Texas nursing homes receive nearly $400 million to battle COVID-19
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has begun distributing nearly $400 million to Texas nursing facilities impacted most by the novel coronavirus, the department announced Friday.
The funds were released in 749 payments to nursing homes across the state, according to a press release. Each facility will receive a fixed sum of $50,000, plus $2,500 per bed.
Funding will be used to support nursing homes with significant expenses or lost revenue due to COVID-19 and address “critical needs” such as labor, boosted testing capacity and personal protective equipment stockpiles.
“This funding secured by President Trump will help nursing homes keep the seniors they care for safe during the COVID-19 pandemic,” HHS Secretary Alex Azar said in the release. — Raga Justin