This story will be continuously updated on Jan. 31, 2021.
Texas is scheduled to get more than 520,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine this week, more than state officials say they had originally expected to receive.
Texas Department of State Health Services officials say the boost in doses is due to two factors. One is a 30% increase in the Moderna vaccine that’s being provided by the federal government. The other is a one-time return of 126,750 doses of the Pfizer vaccine that Texas had been required to set aside for vaccinating residents and staff at long-term care facilities.
The state's plans include a total of 48,000 doses for Dallas County, 42,900 in Collin County, 32,975 in Denton and 27,700 in Tarrant. The city of Dallas will also receive 4,875 doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from the state for the week. Right now, only people in groups 1A and 1B are eligible to get a vaccine, however people not in those groups can still register to be put on a waitlist.
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As of Friday, the state was reporting that more than 2.1 million vaccine doses have been administered across Texas. More than 410,000 people are fully vaccinated and over 1.7 million have received their first dose.
The increase in doses comes as local leaders in the Dallas-Fort Worth area are pushing to register more people for vaccine waitlists.
Dallas City Councilmember Jaime Resendez hosted a vaccine registration event Sunday in Pleasant Grove to help residents sign up for the waitlist. The vaccine registration event was from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Pleasant Oaks Recreation Center gym at 8701 Greenmound Ave.
“Our community also has a large percentage of households that lack internet access and many individuals who, for various reasons, feel more comfortable receiving in-person assistance to navigate the vaccine registration process," Resendez said in a statement. "It is our duty to do everything we can to help stop the spread of COVID-19 in our city.”
The event took place on a day when the state of Texas reported 9,903 new cases of coronavirus and 171 more deaths from the disease. In North Texas, Trauma Service Area E has 125 available ICU beds, 1,684 available hospital beds, and a hospitalization rate of 18.38 percent.
Many are frustrated at the speed of the vaccine roll-out so far across the state, especially as it seems supply can't keep up with demand.
Just on Saturday, people were stuck in a line of cars for hours as they tried to get a dose of the vaccine at Dallas' drive-thru site.
Mayor Eric Johnson addressed the issues the site had via a statement Sunday.
"On Saturday, we had more than 2,700 doses left to give out in a single day, and we continued to have a link-sharing problem that led to people making unauthorized appointments."
Johnson admitted challenges were to be expected due to the limited supply and added an apology to those who waited in line.
"I have heard from many of those affected yesterday, and to them I want to say we are sorry, and we will do better," he said.
But one area in Texas seems to have figured the process out exceptionally well. This Texas Panhandle city has no waiting list and is even giving shots to people who drive in from out-of-state.
What is Amarillo doing differently to make the roll-out work? Potter County Judge Nancy Tanner discussed what’s happening in the Panhandle in a recent episode of WFAA's political podcast Y'all-itics.
Sunday's numbers from around North Texas:
Dallas County reports 1,617 more cases, 12 deaths
Dallas County Health and Human Services reported 1,617 total new cases of coronavirus, 300 of which are probable cases. The county is now at 227,769 confirmed cases and 30,748 probable cases.
The county also reported 12 deaths Sunday, placing the county at a total of 2,191 deaths from coronavirus in Dallas County. Ten of the 12 people reported dead had underlying high-risk health conditions, and eight of those reported dead were found dead at their homes, according to county officials.
Those reported dead Sunday are:
- A Dallas man in his 30s who died in an area hospital emergency department and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Dallas man in his 40s who had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Duncanville woman in her 40s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- An Irving woman in her 50s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
- A Grand Prairie man in his 50s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Dallas woman in her 50s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Mesquite man in his 50s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Grand Prairie man in his 50s who had been critically ill in an area hospital and did not have underlying high-risk health conditions
- A Lancaster man in his 60s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
- A Dallas man in his 60s who was found dead at home and did not have underlying high-risk health conditions.
- A Dallas man in his 70s who was found dead at home and had underlying high-risk health conditions.
- A DeSoto woman in her 70s who had been critically ill in an area hospital and had underlying high-risk health conditions
Tarrant County reports 1,888 new cases, 36 deaths
Tarrant County Public Health reported 1,888 new cases and 36 deaths Sunday. The day's case count puts Tarrant County at 218,798 total cases and 2,212 deaths.
All but one of those reported dead Sunday had underlying health conditions, officials said.
Those deceased were from:
Arlington:
- Two men in their 50s
- A man in his 60s
- Four men in their 70s
- A man and a woman in their 80s
- A woman in her 90s
Azle:
A man in his 80s
Bedford
A man in his 80s
Blue Mound
A man in his 50s
Euless
Two women in their 80s
Fort Worth
- Aman in his 50s
- A woman in her 60s
- A man and a woman in their 70s
- A man and a woman in their 90s
Haslet
- A woman in her 60s
- A man in his 80s
Hurst
- A man and a woman in their 60s
- Two women in their 90s
Keller
A man in his 90s
Mansfield
Aman in his 60s
North Richland Hills
- Two men in their 70s
- A woman in her 90s
Richland Hills
Awoman in her 50s
Southlake
A woman in her 90s
White Settlement
A woman in her 90s
Unincorporated Tarrant County
A man in his 70s
Collin County reports 326 new cases
Collin County is reporting 326 new cases and nine probable cases Sunday, according to data from the state. Sunday's reported numbers place the county at 62,180 confirmed cases and 577 deaths from COVID-19.
WFAA digital producers Jennifer Prohov and Jake Harris contributed to this report.