EDINBURG — Hidalgo County announced 11 new cases of COVID-19 Wednesday night, adding that eight of the county’s 139 cases have been cleared for release.
“The Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines do not say patients have ‘recovered,’ but do list guidelines for clearing them for release from isolation and return for work. Hidalgo County has adopted slightly more stringent guidelines,” a statement from the county read.
According to the release, CDC guidelines say that a patient must stop showing symptoms of the illness for seven days, including having no fever for three days, while the county is requiring patients to be free of symptoms for 10 days and that no one in the household test positive for COVID-19.
“This is encouraging news, but we should in no way let our guard down,” county Judge Richard F. Cortez wrote in the statement. “We know Easter is a time for extended families to gather, but the best thing to do for your families this Easter is to stay at home with your core family.”
The new 11 cases include residents from Alamo, Edinburg, McAllen, Mercedes, Mission, San Juan and Weslaco. They range in age from 24 to 66, and include seven women and four men.
The release added that 19 people are now hospitalized with the disease in the county, including five in intensive care units.
So far there have been 269 cases of COVID-19 reported in the Rio Grande Valley, 139 in Hidalgo County, 118 in Cameron, seven in Starr and five in Willacy.
There have been three fatalities in Hidalgo, Cameron and Willacy. Four of the Starr County cases have been cleared and 23 cases in Cameron County have been cleared, bringing the total reported cleared cases in the Valley to 35.
