County Judge Clay Jenkins Urges Dallasites To Skip The NYE Parties, Southwest Says It Won’t Have To Make Any Further Pay Cuts Or Furloughs And More.

Just as quickly as it came, the holiday season is on its way out. Thanksgiving and Christmas, which are celebrated in gatherings, have posed a threat to public health in the socially distant times we’re living in.

Now, with just one holiday left, health experts and officials — and quite frankly us at Central Track — are urging Dallasites to skip the New Year’s Eve parties for a night at home. On Monday, Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins warned of the possible effects we could see due to gathering for the holiday, including hospital bed shortages.

This comes as Dr. Anthony Fauci over the weekend told CNN the worst is yet to come in the fight with the virus.

Listen, we’re just as ready to wave this year into history as you are, but the reality is that the COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t end with the calendar. In the meantime, stay masked up, keep the hand sanitizer on deck and stay in on NYE — it’s such an overrated holiday anyway.

  • On Monday, Dallas county reported 1,142 confirmed cases and 15 new deaths. This brings the cumulative case count to 167,900 and the total death toll to 1,580. Additionally, the county reported 101 probable cases.
  • Reporting from 25 Dallas-area hospitals showed 4,045 out of  5,911 total beds were occupied as of Monday. Additionally, 733 of 936 ICU beds were occupied, while 462 of 1,036 ventilators were in use.

  • Starting this week, the state will enter the next part of the first phase of offering vaccinations to eligible Texans. This part of the first phase includes long-term care facility residents and staff. The second phase will include anyone above the age of 65 as well as anyone who is 16 and older with chronic health problems. However, experts say this current first phase will last several weeks
  • After Texas hit statewide record highs, Judge Jenkins urged Dallasites to avoid gatherings for New Year’s Eve. On Monday, the state reported a total of 11,351 hospitalizations due to the virus. The county reported just 27 available ICU beds on Monday. Jenkins warned that if the bed supply runs out, patients will be “forced to have less than optimum care.”
  • A new bill is extending a CDC-led September eviction moratorium through the end of January. Beyond buying residents another month of protections from eviction, the bill allocates $25 billion in renters aid with about $1.9 billion of it to be given to Texas. A target date for when the funds will be available has not yet been determined.
  • Dallas-based SOuthwest Airlines says it won’t have to enter further pay cut and furlough talks after Donald Trump signed the latest economic stimulus bill on Sunday. The $900 billion bill allocates $15 billion in aid for airlines and requires all airline jobs to be protected through March 31. However, Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said with the passing of the bill, Southwest won’t have to force cuts of any kind through the entirety of 2021.
  • Ashford Hospitality, a Dallas firm founded by Monty Bennett — who returned millions in PPP after public backlash earlier in the pandemic — received a $200 million “lifeline” in order to “navigate the pandemic.” On Monday, the company, which runs more than 100 hotels, announced it agreed to a three-year loan commitment from a California-based credit investment company called Oaktree Capital Management.
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