A two-week delay in reporting from state coronavirus test results along with the San Antonio health department's transition to a new digital system resulted in late reporting of more than 5,000 new cases in the city on July 16, Texas Public Radio reports.
On July 16, San Antonio health department Metro Health reported 5,501 new COVID-19 cases, which was almost four times higher than the city's previous daily record on July 3 of 1,334 cases, according to the report. Of the July 16 reported cases, 691 were new and the remaining 4,810 were from the backlog of reporting.
Metro Health's transition to a digital system also contributed to the reporting delay of about 800 additional cases. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the delay in reporting did not affect patient notification and city officials said the miscommunication between Texas state and Metro Health has been resolved, according to the report.
"It's frustrating. We've seen a number of these backlogs happen, and you know, quite honestly, we're examining these data on a daily basis," Mr. Nirenberg said. "We want to make sure we are consistent, and the delay in these data is making that very difficult on us. I know our Metro Health Department has been working double-time just to sort out data."