TxDSHS Press Release

DSHS Provides Precautions Following Animal New World Screwworm Case in Texas

June 8, 2026 - The Department of State Health Services is alerting Texans to the presence of New World screwworm in the state following confirmation of an NWS detection in a bovine in Zavala County. The three-week-old affected calf was found with larvae from the parasitic fly in its umbilical area. New World screwworm flies have been moving north through Mexico since they were first detected there in November 2024.

DSHS Now Accepting Applications for Statewide Food Truck License

June 5, 2026 - The Texas Department of State Health Services has opened applications for a new statewide license for mobile food vendors, including food trucks, pushcarts and roadside vendors. Last year’s passage of HB 2844 created the new MFV license type that will be valid everywhere in Texas so mobile food vendors will no longer have to obtain a separate license for each local jurisdiction they operate in. Beginning July 1, all MFVs must have a DSHS license to operate.

New Disease Testing Added to Texas Newborn Screening Panel

June 2, 2026 - The Texas Department of State Health Services added a new enzyme deficiency test on June 1, 2026, to its newborn screening panel, meaning that all Texas newborns are now tested for 60 rare, genetic conditions. Tests for hearing loss and critical congenital heart disease are additional point-of-service tests typically conducted by the birthing center.

DSHS Adds Lysosomal Diseases Testing to State’s Newborn Screening Panel

September 4, 2025 - Texas Department of State Health Services added four lysosomal disease tests to its newborn screening panel in August, pushing the number of conditions every baby born in Texas is screened for to 59. Each baby is screened twice, meaning around 800,000 specimens are tested annually in the Texas Newborn Screening Laboratory to help find infants who may have one or more of the medical conditions.

Hearing loss and critical congenital heart disease are additional point of service tests, typically conducted by the birthing facility.

EMS Scholarship Program Attracts, Retains Personnel in Texas

New advertising campaign seeks to further increase recruitment

September 6, 2023 - The Texas Department of State Health Services’ Emergency Medical Services Scholarship Program has helped attract EMS personnel in Texas, contributing to an increase of 6,000 certified professionals in the last three years.

World TB Day Observed at Texas Center for Infectious Disease

March 24, 2023 - Texas Center for Infectious Disease commemorates World Tuberculosis Day today with a conference featuring presentations from staff and partners plus tours of the TCID campus in San Antonio.

World TB Day marks the day in 1882 when the bacteria that causes tuberculosis was discovered. The illness continues to impact populations around the world and in Texas. While TB cases in 2020 and 2021 stayed just below 1,000 in the state, provisional data show cases increased here to 1,088 in 2022.

State Health Officials Warn of Dangerous Drug Combination

March 21, 2023 - The Texas Department of State Health Services has issued a health advisory notifying health care providers of reports that an animal tranquilizer called xylazine has been found mixed with illegal drugs distributed in Texas. Law enforcement has identified xylazine in the illegal fentanyl supply in West Texas, and it has been combined with other opioids, benzodiazepines like Xanax, and recreational drugs, leading to at least four reported xylazine-related deaths.

DSHS and Texas A&M Health Announce Texas Vaccine Outreach, Education Program Grants

December 29, 2021 - The Texas Department of State Health Services, in partnership with the Texas A&M University Health Science Center, has awarded more than $8.6 million to local organizations across the state through the Texas Vaccine Outreach and Education Grant Program. The program’s objective is to fund COVID-19 outreach and education activities aimed at increasing the number of fully vaccinated people in Texas.

Texas Identifies Case of COVID-19 Omicron Variant

December 7, 2021 - The first known Texas case of the COVID-19 B.1.1.529 variant has been identified in a resident of Harris County. The adult female resident was recently diagnosed with COVID-19. Results of genetic sequencing this week showed that the infection was caused by the Omicron variant strain. The case is being investigated by Harris County Public Health and the Texas Department of State Health Services.

Texas Data Shows Unvaccinated People 20 Times More Likely to Die from COVID-19

November 8, 2021 - A new study released by the Texas Department of State Health Services shows that during the month of September, Texans not vaccinated against COVID-19 were about 20 times more likely to suffer a COVID-19-associated death and 13 times more likely to test positive than people who were fully vaccinated.

Shelby County Today

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