The latest health care news from The Texas Tribune.
Enriqueta Aragonez is one of 15 family members who contracted the coronavirus after a small indoor birthday celebration earlier this month where no one wore masks. Full Story
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The border city recently resorted to using inmates from the county jail to move bodies. At the request of county officials, the state is sending assistance. Full Story
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Officials are preparing for the massive undertaking of distributing a vaccine that may require multiple doses and subzero storage temperatures across a state that covers 270,000 square miles and some 170 rural counties. Full Story
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At least four of the COVID-19 vaccines showing promise are using technology developed in Jason McLellan's lab at the University of Texas at Austin. Full Story
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The request comes as the county has used low-level offenders from the county jail to help transport bodies and as officials await a response from the Texas National Guard. Full Story
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The two teams will move to Lubbock and Amarillo, which are in counties with some of the highest rates of COVID-19 per 1,000 residents in the state. Full Story
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Abbott's news conference came the same day that Texas reported more daily new cases than ever before — 12,293 — easily surpassing the previous record of 10,823 two days earlier. Full Story
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After the county's hospitalization rate crept up over 15%, public health officials issued a public health warning to try and stop the spread of the coronavirus. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the TribCast, Emma talks to Ross, Edgar and Patrick about the challenges of vaccine distribution in rural Texas, the latest in the allegations against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and the controversial new head of the state GOP. Full Story
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The county has turned to jail inmates to staff mobile morgues, and local officials say hospitals are nearing a point where they could have to ration care. Full Story
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The last time case numbers were this high, Abbott closed bars and urged Texans to avoid summer holiday gatherings. This time, he's staying the course, relying on a 2-month-old blueprint to claw back reopenings regionally based on hospitalizations. Full Story
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The pandemic-induced recession punched a hole in the Texas budget that lawmakers will try to patch when their session starts in January. And a hole in the state's finances almost always starts a conversation about how to raise money. This time, marijuana and casinos are in the spotlight. Full Story
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Health experts worry that increased travel and mingling over Thanksgiving and into the December holidays could exacerbate an already dangerous situation as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rising across Texas. Full Story
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Few Texas universities — some of which have been identified as coronavirus hot spots — have explicitly encouraged students to quarantine for 14 days before Thanksgiving or required exit testing, despite staggering rises in case counts across the state and country. Full Story
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In the weekend edition of The Brief podcast, hear from a student who says that because he's immunocompromised, he's worried that students aren't taking the pandemic seriously when off campus, making him feel trapped in his home. Full Story
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Texas joins California, which has 10 million more residents than Texas, as the nation’s leaders in coronavirus cases. Full Story
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A state district judge permitted the El Paso shutdown to stand last week pending a final resolution of the case, but the 8th Court of Appeals paused the shutdown until a final decision is made. That could come as soon as Friday. Full Story
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The extension comes despite the Texas attorney general’s office’s ongoing efforts to have the county order rejected by state courts. A decision is expected later in the week. Full Story
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Texas A&M confirmed the new cases as football programs across the country continue to face postponements and cancellations while trying to finish the season during a pandemic. Full Story
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Texas argues the entire law must fall after Congress zeroed out one critical provision. Several justices seemed unconvinced. Full Story
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