Austin Public Health

A day after his comments, the head of Austin Public Health said test numbers and wastewater monitoring show the BA.2 omicron variant is still present in the area. She urged Central Texans to take precautions when gathering.

People 50 and older — who are at least four months removed from their first booster dose — can get an additional shot.

The health agency is doing away with the Stage 1 through 5 charts and using charts that show three levels: low, medium and high COVID-19 risk. Austin-Travis County is currently at the low level.

Health officials said they will closely monitor possible infections following spring break, but masking is now largely optional in the Austin area.

The area was in Stage 5, the highest threat level, just last week, but with dramatically improved hospitalization numbers and infection rates, APH downgraded the threat level for the third time in eight days.

COVID-19 conditions are improving, but Austin Public Health still advises wearing masks indoors in public places as the spring festival season approaches.

Austin Public Health says it's lowering its guidelines following a dip in hospitalizations and new COVID cases but folks should still mask-up.

APH says its officials will be discussing local trends, the importance of being up-to-date with COVID vaccines and changes to APH operations.

Local health officials urge people, especially those with chronic illnesses, to get vaccinated and boosted as quickly as possible to protect themselves against COVID-19. About a third of eligible residents are still not fully vaccinated.

There were actually about 900 new cases. Health officials are rolling out a new automated system for reporting COVID cases.