Texas monitoring increase in COVID-19 cases In one 24 hour period this week, the daily number of active COVID-19 cases locally jumped. AUSTIN, Texas - Hospital beds are currently available in Austin. As of Tuesday, there were 124 people hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the five-county metro area. However in one 24-hour period this week, the daily number of active cases locally jumped. The jump is a reflection of a statewide, upward trend linked to the Delta variant of COVID-19, which is now starting to look like a spike. "We're pretty concerned, at the Health Department. Its something we are watching real closely," said Chris Van Deusen with the Texas Department of State Health Services.