Five Democrats who flew to Washington DC last week to break a quorum at the state legislature's special session in Austin have now tested positive for COVID-19. More than 50 Democrats in the Texas House left the state to prevent action on a bill dealing with election laws.
Representative Gene Wu (D-Houston) tweeted a picture of everyone on the plane, writing, "Let our mistake be the object lesson. All of us had been fully vaccinated since March. We got complacent because we felt safe. We had no positives for months, and we got sloppy. Being vaccinated doesn't ALWAYS stop you from spreading the virus. ALWAYS MASK UP INDOORS!"
Wu says the five who tested positive either had "only mild (sniffles) or no symptoms."
"It does turn out that, in a vaccinated person, they're not going to the hospital, or they don't have as many symptoms," says Dr. Katie Jarvis, a family physician in Dallas.
Jarvis says that can highlight the importance of getting the vaccine.
"It doesn't guarantee you won't become infected. It just means you might have a milder disease, or you won't be hospitalized, or you'll be less likely to be hospitalized," she says. "I would still encourage people to get the vaccine because the people who are getting hospitalized either severely immuno-compromised or they didn't have the vaccine."
Through Monday, the Texas Department of State Health Services said 51.5% of Texans 12 and older were fully vaccinated. Hospitalizations, however, had increased to more than 3,000 for the first time since April 12.
Hospitals in North Texas had 813 COVID-19 patients Monday, using 5.2% of beds, up from 2.7% the last week of May.
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Meanwhile, Texas Democrats say the cost of their Washington getaway is likely to run well into seven figures.
State Rep. Armando Walle of Houston is in charge of the fundraising for the junket. He tells NBC News if they end up staying into early August, the total tab will come in around $1.5 million. Walle says that includes the chartered jets, food, lodging and other transportation costs.
Walle claims no taxpayer money is being spent on the protest trip, adding they've raised about $250,000 to cover expenses.
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