As hospitalizations continue to dip, Texas tops 11,000 virus deaths – with over 1,000 added this week

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas surpassed 11,000 coronavirus deaths on Friday and reported more than 4,600 confirmed new cases, while the number of patients hospitalized because of the virus continued to fall.

Texas earlier this week became just the fourth state to surpass 10,000 deaths, but the toll has rapidly mounted as the state has averaged about 200 new deaths daily in August.

State health officials reported that roughly 5,500 coronavirus patients were hospitalized Friday, which is nearly half as many as July’s peak.

But while hospitalizations have been on the decline after the record highs in July, they are still higher than levels in early June.

In El Paso on Friday, health officials reported 4 new virus deaths locally, along with a significant drop in active cases.