From Bishop Vásquez::
"The Church continues to encourage all who are eligible to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Receiving the vaccine is not morally objectionable and is an act of charity toward the other members of the community, particularly those who are susceptible to contracting the virus. While many protocols help, vaccination and self-screening remain the most effective means of stopping the spread of the virus."
Bishop Vásquez's latest pastoral message
From The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB):
"Receiving one of the COVID-19 vaccines ought to be understood as an act of charity toward the other members of our community.. In this way, being vaccinated safely against COVID-19 should be considered an act of love of our neighbor and part of our moral responsibility for the common good."
From the mayor of Waco mayor to faith leaders.
The primary concern of the mayor is hospital capacity. He states that today we are at the brink of system-wide overload. Hospitalizations are at record levels and if we don’t change the trajectory of this pandemic we will be faced with the very real situation where local Wacoans may not receive the critical care they need.
The mayor ask that all faith leaders urge people to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
If you are hesitant or have concerns, please speak to your doctor.
The McLennan County Medical Society will publish a letter in the Waco Tribune-Herald this weekend, signed by 300 local physicians, advocating that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective. We will make this letter available on COVIDwaco.com after it is published.
If you are unwilling to get the vaccine, please respect how contagious this vaccine is. If you are unvaccinated against COVID-19 please wear a mask and practice social distancing.
As of Thursday, 8/26/2021:
Number of new cases of COVID-19 reported: 249
Number of active cases: 1,434
Number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals: 175
Number of ICU beds: 54; % of ICU bed in use: 100%
(Hospitals are converting non-ICU beds to care for most critical patients)
Number of new fatalities due to COVID-19: 1
Total number of fatalities due to COVID-19 in McLennan County: 518
% of population (over age 12) vaccinated against COVID-19: 44%
% of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 who were not vaccinated: 93%
Resources
COVIDwaco.com for local COVID-19 information
Free testing information and Local vaccine clinic schedules.
Waco-McLennan County Dashboard and Weekly Report: Local data and trends.
McLennan County Emergency Rental Assistance Program: for rental or mortgage assistance.
The Waco McLennan County Public Health District provides updates on Facebook and Twitter.
CDC Report on reinfection and COVID-19, noting that reinfections do occur and persons with prior infection are better protected with the COVID-19 vaccine.