Since February, there have been 8,787 deaths due to COVID-19 in Texas. Of those, only 43 deaths were among fully-vaccinated people, according to a report in the Texas Tribune. The study covered the period from Feb. 8 to July 14.

Fully vaccinated means the case of COVID-19 occurred more than two weeks after the second dose was administered to those who received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or two weeks after receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which only requires one dose.

Of the 43 vaccinated people who died, 75 percent had an underlying health conditions and 95 percent were over 60 years old. The majority of those who died were white and were men.

Since the pandemic began in March 2020, 51,848 people have died from the virus in Texas.

The number of daily deaths from the virus is down from 400 per day at the beginning of the year to 18 per day by the end of last week. About 43 percent of Texans are fully vaccinated.

The vaccine is available at most chain pharmacies in Dallas including Kroger, CVS and Walgreens and is available for walk-ins when there is someone available to administer it. It’s also available at the Dallas County Health Department and at special pop-up clinics around the city that are often scheduled around events.

If you have had COVID-19, the vaccine is still recommended to boost your production of antibodies. If you have been treated with monoclonal antibodies or convalescent plasma, wait 90 days before receiving the vaccine.

— David Taffet