HOUSTON — As we’ve been reporting, COVID cases are surging again across the state, and Texas hospitals are filling up.
When the Texas health department dashboard updated on Friday, the number of people hospitalized in Texas with COVID reached 11,261. That number eclipsed the surge from last summer that got as high as 10,893.
Editor's note: Video above is from a report on 8/12 detailing the need for nurses in Texas
Both numbers are still below the peak of the pandemic, which was in January of 2021, when Texas had 14,218 people hospitalized with COVID.
Friday’s hospitalization number is an increase of 470 patients over Thursday’s. Across the entire state, there are 323 ICU bets available, though in the Texas Medical Center, they can operate under surge capacity.
KHOU 11's Brandi Smith explains how surge capacity works.
Tracking Texas vaccinations
Below is a map of vaccination rates by zip code in Texas.
The colors on the map below are based on this scale: the darker red, the fewer people are vaccinated. The darker green, the more people are vaccinated. All of this data comes from the Texas Department of State Health Services. The vaccination rates are updated daily.
If, while you're exploring, you'd like to return to the statewide view, hit the "Reset" button beneath the map.
To zoom in on an area of interest, put your mouse right there and use the scroll wheel on your mouse to zoom in. You can also drag the map to adjust. Click on a ZIP code to highlight it. If you want to keep looking around, click on that ZIP code on the map again to deselect it.