Houston-area COVID-19 outbreak — including delta variant cases — should be a wake-up call for Texans, health expert warns

The new and highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus may have sparked the recent outbreak of 125-plus cases of COVID-19 linked to a Houston-area youth church camp, and a Texas virologist says the breakout should be a wake-up call for communities.

“Clearly, COVID is not over,” said Dr. Benjamin Neuman, a virologist and professor at Texas A&M University.

“COVID isn’t ever gone until it’s completely gone,” Neuman said. “And I think we’ve made the mistake of assuming that the virus would go away or assuming that the virus wouldn’t affect children … We keep stumbling into the same mistakes over and over, and that is not a way out of COVID-19.”

The Galveston County church’s camp took place in June with more than 450 adults and youth in attendance, according to the Houston Chronicle. More than 125 COVID-19 cases have been reported, of which three thus far have been confirmed to be the delta variant.

The delta variant is poised to become the leading variant in the United States in coming months according to Texas health experts, whose top concern is the risk it represents for those who are unvaccinated.

That variant, known by scientists as B.1.617.2, now accounts for about a quarter of virus infections in the nation, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. First discovered in India, it triggered a devastating outbreak there in April and May and has since spread to 85 other countries, attacking areas where vaccination rates are the lowest.

While dozens of variants have spawned from the original COVID-19 virus, the delta variant is the most transmissible so far, said Dr. Rebecca Fischer, an infectious disease epidemiologist and assistant professor at Texas A&M University's School of Public Health. It is also leading to higher rates of hospitalization for those infected, according to research.

Fischer called the variant “a perfect storm of a variant” because of how easily it can pass from person to person. Because of limited testing, there is little concrete information about its prevalence in Texas. However, Fischer said there’s a clear way to prevent uncontrollable surges: vaccinations.

As of July 4, according to The Texas Tribune’s COVID-19 tracker, about 41.5% of Texans had been fully vaccinated. That compares to the current national rate of 47% for complete vaccinations, according to the CDC. But rates of administered shots in Texas have slowed in the past few months — at a time when Fischer says protection is needed more than ever.

“Don’t let your guard down,” she said. “We’re so close to getting our lives back, and we are, in some way, moving in that direction … but this is another curveball by this virus.”