Coronavirus in Texas: State sees highest single-day death toll from COVID-19

Thursday's biggest developments:

• Texas records its deadliest day from the new coronavirus with 50 deaths
• ACLU files lawsuit seeking release of medically fragile immigrants from detention
• State transportation department votes to move forward on I-35 expansion plans
• Texans among federal lawmakers wanting investigation into meatpacking plants

Texas records highest one-day death total from COVID-19

[5:15 p.m.] Texas recorded 50 deaths from the new coronavirus Thursday, the highest one-day total since the pandemic began. The state also reported 1,033 new cases Thursday — the third-highest increase since the state began reporting coronavirus case counts. The highest daily total was 1,441 new cases April 10.

The number of known cases has reached 28,087, and two new counties reported their first cases Thursday; over 80% of the state’s 254 counties have reported at least one case. Harris County has reported the most cases, 6,161, followed by Dallas County, which has reported 3,352 cases. See maps of the latest case numbers for each county and case rates per 1,000 residents.

Statewide, the virus has caused 782 deaths. Harris County reported six additional deaths Thursday, bringing its total to 109, more than any other county.

As of Thursday, 1,686 patients are known to be hospitalized in Texas, a decrease of 16 patients from Wednesday. At least 330,300 tests have been conducted. — Carla Astudillo

ACLU files lawsuit seeking release for immigrants with medical conditions

[2:30 p.m.] The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas has filed a class-action lawsuit seeking to have four people in immigration detention released due to their medical conditions.

Attorneys representing a woman released from an immigration detention facility in Houston by a federal court in April have moved to convert the case into a class-action suit to protect other medically vulnerable people from COVID-19, the ACLU said in a written statement. The four plaintiffs who have been added to the lawsuit are detained in Conroe.

The ACLU said the lawsuit also “seeks the release of all those at heightened risk of serious illness or death if they contract COVID-19 due to age or an underlying medical condition under CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines.”

There have been 449 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among detained immigrants across the country. That includes more than 85 in facilities in Texas. — Julián Aguilar

Workforce Commission: Employers should report rejections of suitable work

[12:15 p.m.] As some businesses and restaurants prepare to open their doors to the public Friday, the Texas Workforce Commission is advising employers to report employees who say they won't return to work because they can earn more money from unemployment benefits.

“You can’t force them to come back,” Velissa Chapa, legal counsel to the commissioner representing employers, said during a webinar Thursday. “But if an employee had already filed for unemployment, they may be denied benefits if they deny suitable work.”

"Suitable work" must be within the realm of the worker’s training and experience and doesn’t include work that can be proven unsafe, said Tommy Simmons, who also provides legal counsel to a workforce commissioner.

Employers should give workers written proof of steps taken to create a safe work environment, including things like sanitization guidelines and social distancing parameters, Chapa said, adding that employers should also document written offers of work. Employers should report rejections based on an employee's preference to receive unemployment benefits to the commission’s fraud department, she said.

A Texas Workforce Commission spokesman told The Texas Tribune on Tuesday that it is working on establishing guidelines for what constitutes “good cause” for employees to refuse to return to work. — Clare Proctor

Transportation commissioners vote to keep I-35 expansion on track

[11:05 a.m.] The Texas Department of Transportation is moving ahead with a multibillion-dollar expansion of Interstate 35 in Austin despite requests from some Texas legislators to wait until the state’s financial outlook clears up.

Texas transportation commissioners voted 3-1 Thursday to use the $3.4 billion in the agency’s discretionary funds on the project, which adds lanes to the highway in Central Texas and which, according to agency officials, will eliminate 11 of the 12 worst “choke points” on state highways.

Commission Chairman J. Bruce Bugg Jr. said the vote to proceed isn’t a promise the project will be built, but it commits the funding in the agency’s Unified Transportation Program. The discretionary funds would cover a little less than half of the total $7.5 billion price tag, most of which the commission previously approved.

“The COVID-19 environment we are living through today has had historic impacts on the world economy and our economy in Texas,” Bugg said. “But we know the sun will once again shine on Texas. In the meantime, it is the responsibility of this commission to look ahead to the future needs of Texas.” — Ross Ramsey

Congressional Hispanic Caucus wants better working conditions for meatpackers

[5 a.m.] The Congressional Hispanic Caucus, chaired by U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, is calling on the federal government to improve working conditions for employees in the meat processing industry. In a letter sent to senior Trump administration officials, the federal lawmakers also asked for an investigation into working conditions of meatpacking businesses.

The Texas Department of State Health Services is investigating coronavirus outbreaks at meat processing plants JBS Beef and Tyson Foods in Moore and Shelby counties, respectively. More than a dozen meat and poultry processing plants nationwide, often staffed by immigrant workers, have had to temporarily shut down to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.

According to Angelina County Judge Don Lymbery, nine of 10 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed there Wednesday were from Pilgrim’s Pride, one of the largest chicken producers in the country.

“We request that you conduct an investigation into the pervasiveness and consequential effects that the working conditions for meat processing workers during COVID-19 have had on workers’ wellbeing and our nation’s food supply,” Congressional Hispanic Caucus members wrote in a letter to the Trump administration.

Besides Castro, who is a San Antonio Democrat, U.S. Reps. Veronica Escobar of El Paso and Sylvia R. Garcia of Houston also signed the letter.

“However, while an investigation is critical to better understand the problems in the meatpacking industry and possible solutions, it is imperative that the Department of Labor immediately issue an emergency temporary standard to protect essential workers,” the letter said. — Abby Livingston