The Defense Department is sending an additional 580 medical personnel to Texas as the state sees a surge in new COVID-19 cases.
Several states, including Texas, California, Florida and Arizona, have seen a dramatic uptick in cases and hospitalization in recent weeks.
Last week, the nation passed the 3 million coronavirus case mark, with more than 131,000 deaths among its population of 300 million. The nation also saw a new single-day record spike with 60,000 new cases on Tuesday.
In a statement Sunday, U.S. Northern Command said that “as part of the ongoing whole-of-nation response to COVID-19, U.S. Northern Command has assigned approximately 580 Department of Defense medical personnel in support of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the State of Texas.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott recently moved to roll back some of the state’s reopening plans amid a significant spike in new cases. He has ordered bars and restaurants to once again close or cut seating capacity as new cases increased.
The number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases in Texas since this time last month has tripled. According to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, on June 12, Texas had seen roughly 84,000 cases, and by July 11, the state saw over 254,000.
• Lauren Toms can be reached at lmeier@washingtontimes.com.
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