Williamson County Goes Red, Reporting ‘Uncontrolled Community Spread’ of COVID-19

Williamson County moved into the highest phase of its COVID-19 risk levels on Monday.

The red phase indicates that there is uncontrolled community spread in the area. Changing the phase does not mean a change in local rules, but it does signal a change in local authority recommendations for vaccinated and unvaccinated residents.

Due to the rapid increase in new cases, Williamson County and the Cities Health District now recommend that people – regardless of their immunization status – wear a mask in public, stand 6 feet away from people with whom they don’t live and avoid crowds. And regardless of their vaccine status or the county’s COVID phase, people should follow the requirements set by local businesses, places and schools, says WCCHD.

The average rate of new infections in the county is 14.54 per 100,000 population. The rate more than doubled last week, according to a press release from WCCHD. It has been multiplied by 6.5 since the end of June. The age groups with the greatest number of cases are 18 to 30 years and 31 to 50 years.

Williamson County entered the orange phase, which signals “strong community spread,” last Monday. District health chief epidemiologist Allison Stewart told KUT at the time that there was no definitive reason for the increase in cases, but the majority of those cases – over 97% – were unvaccinated people.

Prior to that, the county had been in the yellow phase, or “moderate community spread”, since late May.

Authorities say the most effective way to avoid contracting COVID-19 is to get the vaccine. According to state data, about 60% of Williamson County residents eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine (those aged 12 or older) have been fully immunized.

Low vaccination rates and the highly contagious delta variant have public health experts worried about the possibility of another wave of COVID-19 in Texas. Over the weekend, the state’s positivity rate – the number of tests administered that come back positive – exceeded 10%, a percentage it has not reached since the winter.