Harris County, TX – As of 4 p.m. today, the COVID-19 Community Level has moved to Green (Low) under the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) system that Harris County adopted a month ago. Under the previous threat level system, which had different indicators, the county would be trending towards down green. Wastewater viral load continues to trend downward along with new cases.
Earlier this month, Harris County transitioned from the COVID-19 threat level system to the CDC’s COVID-19 Community Level model, marking a new phase in the fight against COVID-19 in Harris County.
“This is great news!” said Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo. “Across the board, whether it be hospitalizations, cases, trends or raw numbers, that is a testament to the work this community did and continues to do to fight COVID-19. It took a concerted community effort to get us to this point, and I am so proud of Harris County for reaching this milestone. We know this is not the end of our time with COVID, but because of the vaccines, boosters, and treatments, we have come a long way in this fight.”
“And although the community level is currently low, we still want to encourage residents to take necessary precautions to keep us in this category, especially as we continue into the fall season and are presented with new variants and with the holidays just around the corner. Harris County Public Health (HCPH) is offering the Pfizer bivalent booster vaccines to individuals ages 12 years and older and the Moderna bivalent booster vaccines to individuals 18 years and older.”
The updated bivalent boosters are administered in a single dose and protect against the original COVID-19 strains as well as the dominant Omicron variant. People who are up to date on their vaccines and boosters have a much lower risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 compared to those who are unvaccinated.
HCPH will continue to provide COVID-19 guidance and updates as the pandemic continues. Updated COVID level guidance and explanations for what each section entails can be found on ReadyHarris.org and hcphtx.org.
If you know someone in need of a free COVID-19 vaccination or in need of a COVID-19 booster dose, visit ReadyHarris.org or call 832-927-8787. Appointments are not necessary, but HCPH can help you find a location closest to you or help with special accommodations for those who need travel assistance.
