Travis County exceeds state COVID-19 vaccination average
AUSTIN, Texas - Austin Public Health and Travis County have released new guidelines for those vaccinated against COVID-19 as the county leads Central Texas in fully vaccinated residents.
Austin is in stage 3 which means those who are fully vaccinated can attend outdoor private gatherings without precautions but still need precaution indoors.
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"Travis County is doing quite well compared to our peers across the state of Texas," said interim health authority Dr. Mark Escott.
According to data from DSHS, when compared to the various major metro areas in Texas, the only county that beats Travis’s 42% for full vaccinations in those 16 and older is El Paso County.
"The faster we can get our community vaccinated the faster we can return to normalcy in our lives and I think that’s what we all want," said Dr. Escott. "We are in this situation where the supply of the vaccine locally and state-wide exceeds the demand and we need to increase that demand."
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Not every county in Central Texas is doing as well when it comes to getting the residence fully vaccinated. As of Tuesday, Texas has just over 36% of the population 16 and older fully vaccinated.
Caldwell, Burnet, Milam, and Bastrop counties all are below the state average. Bastrop County health officials tell FOX 7 Austin they have seen a decline in people wanting to be vaccinated and are trying to focus effort on outreach for those hesitant about the vaccine.
This is an issue seen in other counties as well as even Travis County.