Garret Foster protests ensue
Austin is once again the scene of weekend protests. Some marched to the home of council member Kathie Tovo and others marched through downtown in support of Garrett Foster. Police stood ready as needed as protesters hurled insults their way.
“Garret Foster! Garret Foster!” shouted the protestors.
The march to Tovo’s house was a demand for more de-funding of police. In total, 35 people were arrested during the weekend protest. Austin police are expected to detail some of the names and charges sometime today.
COVID-19 update
One week ago today, Austin and Travis County were starting out the week with 396 coronavirus patients in the hospital. That marked in and of itself a steady drop over consecutive days. However, that drop has continued, and as of today the number is down by 99 from the same time a week ago. We now stand at 307 patients overall in Travis County hospitals. 21,214 cases are confirmed since March; 279 of those cases have resulted in death. 18,875 have resulted in a recovery.
Williamson County sees a slight drop in its total number of COVID cases requiring hospitalization. Currently, 69 people are in the hospital and 559 cases are active. Out of the overall 5,715 confirmed cases since March, 79 have died. 4,980 have recovered.
Austin health officials are putting together a plan to distribute an eventual COVID-19 vaccine. Austin Public Health’s Chief Epidemiologist Janet Pichette says they can deliver the vaccines much like tests, with drive-thrus. She says it’s been done successfully in past flu seasons, and it could work again.
“People literally drive their car through, they stick their arm out, they get vaccinated and they drive off,” Pichette says.
The problem with clinics and COVID is the mass gatherings of people, which is why she feels the drive-thru is the best method.
COVID-19 test results can take a week or more to return in many cases. However, the Total Men’s Primary Care clinic in Austin is using a test that provides results in 15 minutes. CEO Robert Sek tells FOX 7 this is the same test being used by major league baseball.
“Whenever the cases spiked in Texas recently, and it takes so long for the results to come back, it really is important for us to know right away if somebody is positive or negative,” says Sek.
Men, women and children can get this test, even without symptoms.
Remdesivir in Texas
Texas is getting another shipment of remdesivir. It’s been one of the most successful drugs used in treating coronavirus and lessening the number of days someone spends in the hospital. Dr. Thomas Patterson, with the University of Texas, says this is not to be confused with an actual vaccine.
“So ideally, we would like to use from remdesivir earlier in the course of an illness when the virus itself is thought to be causing the direct problem,” says Patterson.
Anderson says the ongoing drug trials have shown recovery times cut down by 1/3 when remdesivir is used.
University of Texas fall semester during COVID pandemic
The University of Texas will be cracking down on parties during the fall semester. The school says students will not be allowed to host or attend parties on or off campus, and those who do could face disciplinary action. Officials say that action will be based on the severity of each incident.
Three student government groups at The University of Texas have polled about 1,400 students and found the majority are not comfortable with the schools reopening plan. When asked to rate their level of comfortability on a scale of between 0-10, the average score was below 3. More than 90% also say they’re angry at having to pay full tuition for online only classes.
Texas school reopening plan displeases educators
The Texas Education Agency’s school reopening plan is being backed by Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick. Many educators and groups that represent them remain displeased. Mark Wiggins, with the Association of Texas Professional Educators says health authorities should get the final say and not districts.
“The message attempts to reassure school districts they have the power to make the best decisions for their communities; but provides no real assurances of support, guidance, additional funding or resources from the state,” says Wiggins.
Attorney General Ken Paxton ruled last month that districts will have the final say over local health authorities.
This news and more on News Radio KLBJ:
https://omny.fm/shows/klbjam-flash-briefing-1/am-newscast-8-3-20
