SAN ANTONIO – After a tumultuous June marked by a surge of COVID-19 cases, Bexar County reported 439 new cases on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases to 12,504.
One new death was reported, bringing the death toll to 111. The latest victim was a Hispanic man in his 80s.
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The rise in cases has also been accompanied by a concerning rise in hospitalizations. A total of 1,019 people are hospitalized, Mayor Ron Nirenberg said Wednesday, the highest it has been since the pandemic has started . Nirenberg said nearly a third of all hospitalizations are now related to COVID-19.
Roughly 27% of staffed hospital beds are available, Nirenberg said.
The rapid spread of the disease has led to new local actions, which were formally introduced on Wednesday afternoon. According to the new local emergency orders, businesses must display a list of COVID-19 symptoms. They are also “highly encouraged” to screen the temperatures of employees and customers.
New emergency order requires San Antonio businesses to display list of COVID-19 symptoms
Initially, city and county leaders said during Tuesday night’s briefing that temperature checks and questionnaires would be required of both employees and customers, but the wording was changed when the order was released on Wednesday.