TodayKerrville

A coronavirus test that is used across Texas, including at mass testing events held in Kerr County, has one big problem — it has a risk of producing false negatives. The Food and Drug Administration said on Jan. 4 that the false negatives create a health care issue for those who could be positive for COVID-19. "Lack of monitoring of infected individuals and their household or other close contacts for symptoms resulting in an increased risk of spread of COVID-19 within the community, or other unintended adverse events," the FDA wrote. The agency said that health care providers should Consider retesting their patients using a different test if you suspect an inaccurate result was given recently by the Curative SARS-Cov-2 test. The FDA also said if testing was performed more than two weeks ago, and there is no reason to suspect a current SARS-CoV-2 infection, it is not necessary to retest. Curative was selected to replace the screening that was being performed by the Texas M

A Peterson Health respiratory therapist wears a fully contained breathing apparatus in order to treat patients with COVID-19 at the Kerrville hospital.  As Kerr County leaders, including those from Peterson Health, were hosting a community meeting about the coronavirus spread in the community, the state of Texas continued its grim reporting of COVID-19's impact by announcing two additional deaths of county residents.  The community meeting, which was hosted by the city of Kerrville, featured Peterson Health President and CEO Cory Edmondson making a plea to the community to wear masks and take precautions against contracting the virus, which has now stretched Peterson Regional Medical Center's capacity to care for those not infected with COVID-19.  Edmondson conceded that last month PRMC had a day when it had 36 patients admitted for COVID-19 — 40.9% of its capacity. That number had previously been unreported. Across the Texas Department of State Health Service's San Antonio

Peterson Regional Medical Center said Thursday it had a record number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 — nearing 40% of the hospital's total capacity.  The situation at Kerrville's lone hospital mirrored what was going on across the state and country as thousands of people are sickened by COVID-19. PRMC said it had 34 patients hospitalized — 38% of the hospital's capacity. On Thursday, Peterson said 38 people had tested positive but it was the fourth consecutive day where the hospital system reported positivity rates above 30%. In three days this week, Peterson has screened 404 people for COVID-19 with 132 testing positive for the virus — 32.6%.  At the Kerrville State Hospital, the number of patients sickened by the virus rose to 25, while staff members infected rose to 23. 

  Republican U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, who represents Kerr County, condemned protesters who stormed the U.S. Capitol and offered a rebuke of President Donald Trump for inciting the violent behavior that unfolded on Wednesday.   During a speech Wednesday night after the House of Representatives, Roy said there was no defense of the attack against the U.S. Capitol, but his strongest words — on which he drew applause — were saved for Trump.   “And the president should have never spun up certain Americans into believing something that cannot be,” said Roy, who represents the 21st Congressional District and who is based in Austin. “I applaud House leadership of both parties for bringing us back to do our job, which is to count the electors and no more.” While railing against positions held by Democrats, Roy saved equal passion for his Republican colleagues, who had fomented objections against certifying the 2020 election in favor of Joe Biden, who won the popular vote and Electoral College. “Now

A Kerrville couple was in the middle of Wednesday’s pro-President Trump protests at the U.S. Capitol Building, and they are the first to admit they were proud to be there.   Leigh and David Gibson flew to Washington D.C. on Tuesday to participate in rallies to support President Trump, who is still fighting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Of course, Wednesday was the day that Congress was going to certify the Electoral College but that was delayed when hundreds of people stormed the U.S. Capitol.   There has been plenty of blame placed on Trump for what happened at the Capitol, but the Gibsons see it differently.   “We are not incited by (Trump),” Leigh Gibson said. “We have done our own homework. We are not stupid. In fact, I left his speech early because he’s not telling us anything new. So, we headed out. We marched from the Washington Monument to the Capitol, and that’s when my mother called me and said they’ve breached the Capitol. We just kept marching.” It was durin

The Texas Department of State Health Services reported Wednesday afternoon at least one death of a Kerr County person from COVID-19, and the regional situation when it comes to hospitalizations continued to intensify as the availability of intensive care unit beds dwindled.  The DSHS said that a person from Kerr County died on New Year's Eve, but it also noted a death on Dec. 30. It's not clear if that's the fourth death on Dec. 30 or confirming a death reported by Peterson Regional Medical Center. At least 32 people have died in Kerr County in the month of December and the final death toll may be much higher. An estimated 73 people have now died from COVID-19 in Kerr County since May 31. At Peterson Regional Medical Center there were 32 people hospitalized with COVID-19 and across the San Antonio region, which includes Kerr County, there were just 52 intensive care unit beds available in a region that has 2.9 million people. Across the state, there were more than 13,600 pe

As Kerr County awaits the arrival of vaccines to curb the coronavirus pandemic, the virus continues to surge in the county and Texas. On Wednesday, Peterson Health reported 43 new cases but more concerning is that over the last two days 32% of those seeking coronavirus screening are testing positive for COVID-19.  Peterson Regional Medical Center said it has a record 32 people hospitalized with COVID-19 — 36% of the hospital's capacity. Reporting from the Texas Health and Human Services noted that more patients at the Kerrville State Hospital were infected, and delayed data about nursing homes and assisted living centers showed a bit of stability when it comes to the virus.  Here was the breakdown:  At River Hills Rehabilitation and Health, as of Dec. 23, had 26 residents with the virus and nine employees. The Bandera Highway facility had 75 people — both staff and residents — infected with the virus. There were two deaths.  At the Kerrville State Hospital, as of Tuesday, 24 patien