Coronavirus in Texas

School officials are putting a greater emphasis on testing, vaccinations and masking to combat the variant’s spread. Full Story 

Five of the department’s regional infusion centers have run out of sotrovimab, the only antibody treatment known to be effective against the new variant. Full Story 

The state’s COVID-19 mental health support line has seen a spike in calls since early December as people navigate holidays amid a highly contagious new variant. Full Story 

Texans are taking varying levels of precautions as they finish holiday shopping and prepare for Christmas worship services. Full Story 

So far this month, at least 1.2 million Texans have gotten booster shots — nearly triple the number of people who received their first doses of the vaccine during the same time. Full Story 

The Texas Department of State Health Services, which tracks the number of coronavirus vaccinations, cases, hospitalizations and deaths across the state, won’t be updating its daily dashboard Friday through Sunday both this week and next over the holidays. Full Story 

Abbott’s office says vaccines are the best defense to the pandemic, however, the governor has rarely spoken about vaccines in recent months other than to push back against mandates. He did not respond to a question about whether he got the booster. Full Story 

Live updates: As infections increase ahead of the holidays — and omicron spreads throughout the state — officials urge people to get vaccines and booster shots. Full Story 

Untreated medical conditions, lack of access to testing and limited paid time off leave uninsured Texans particularly vulnerable to the disease. Full Story 

Most local officials insist they still have testing capacity at their public testing sites, but Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said demand has outpaced supply. Full Story 

Some hospitals are better prepared than they were early in the pandemic, but administrators say staff morale still stands on shaky ground. Full Story 

Texas’ housing crunch has spread outside of the state’s major metropolitan areas and into more rural parts of Texas. Smaller cities and towns saw steep increases in home prices as COVID-19 spread. Full Story 

Texas is among states that sued the Biden administration over its mandate. An appeals court ruled in the president's favor Friday and reinstated the rule, set to take effect Jan. 4. Full Story 

Hospitalizations related to the virus remain low in the state, but the number of people testing positive is rising and once again fueling worries about the struggling health care system’s ability to weather a new surge. Full Story 

Our tracker presents the latest on tests, cases, hospitalizations, people who died and vaccinations. We want to know how this information can be more valuable to readers. Full Story 

Early indicators suggest the variant is very contagious, but little is known about the severity of disease it causes. Full Story 

In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Mitchell, James and Karen about the status of the power grid and the pandemic heading into winter. Full Story 

So much is unknown about the new COVID-19 variant: the severity of the illness it causes, whether it can resist vaccines and natural antibodies and whether it’s more contagious than the delta variant that has burned through Texas and the U.S. for months. Full Story 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton had called the mandate “an unprecedented federal vaccine decree” on health care workers. Full Story 

Migrants arrested under Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security push have been imprisoned for weeks or months waiting to appear before a judge. About 90 were finally to receive hearings this week, but court proceedings were canceled. Full Story