New report shows people in their 20s make up the largest share of San Antonio COVID-19 cases

By Sanford Nowlin on Wed, Aug 25, 2021 at 9:00 am

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Courtesy Photo / City of San Antonio

Workers at a city vaccination site administer COVID-19 shots last year.

People 20-29 years old made up the largest proportion of San Antonio-area COVID-19 cases in July, accounting for 21% of the total, according to a new epidemiological report from Metro Health.

Local officials highlighted the numbers during Tuesday evening's coronavirus briefing, urging younger residents who haven't yet been vaccinated to roll up their sleeves.

Nationally, vaccination rates for people under 40 lag those of older Americans. Just 50.9% of individuals 25-39 have been vaccinated, for example, compared to 83.1% of those 65-74, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

“You are prolonging this crisis the longer you stay on the sidelines,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said, addressing younger people who haven't yet gotten their jabs.

San Antonio-area residents in their 30s made up the next highest share of July's cases, according to Metro Health. The average age of those who tested positive for COVID-19 in July was 33, lower than the average age of all cases up to this point in the pandemic: 37.

Just 2% of people diagnosed with COVID-19 last month in the San Antonio area were fully vaccinated, while another 2% had received a single dose, according to Metro Health. The remaining 96% of cases were among the unvaccinated.

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