L.A. County Public Health officials on Friday confirmed 69 new deaths and 2,652 new cases of COVID-19, with 4,380 cases confirmed to date in the Santa Clarita Valley, including 2,152 in the city of Santa Clarita, as California marked the first death of a teen COVID patient.

The increase in county deaths reported Friday is significantly higher than what was reported last week. Last week’s average was nearly 38 new deaths a day, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reported.

Deaths are a lagging indicator of the spread of COVID-19 and reflect exposures that occurred weeks earlier, officials noted.

Countywide, 2,002 people are hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19, 29% of them in the ICU. A total of 2,568 confirmed and suspect cases are currently hospitalized; 18% of these patients are on ventilators.

To date, Public Health has identified 188,481 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of the county, and a total of 4,621 deaths, 46 of them in the SCV.

Test results are available for nearly 1,760,000 county residents, with 10% of all people testing positive.

Public Health anticipates continuing to receive a backlog of lab reports in the coming days due to problems with the state electronic lab reporting system.

California Snapshot
Statewide, the California Department of Public Health confirmed Friday the COVID-related death of a teenager in the Central Valley. This is the first death in California of a teenager, and this young person had underlying health conditions.

Due to patient confidentiality, CDPH will not provide any additional information about this death. There have been no reported deaths in younger age categories, including children 5 and younger.

CDPH on Friday confirmed a total of 493,588 cases, with 9,005 deaths from the disease (up 96). There are 6,632 confirmed hospitalizations and 2,003 ICU hospitalizations in California as of Thursday.

As of July 29, local health departments have reported 23,513 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 127 deaths statewide.

California’s positivity rate – a key indicator of community spread – is trending upward in the 14-day average. Hospitalization rates are also trending upward in the 14-day average.

Numbers may not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed, and the 7-day average more accurately describes trends in number of cases. The 7-day average number of new cases is 8,322 per day, down from the 7-day average from the week prior, 9,881.

“Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of this young person whose death is a tragic and powerful reminder of how serious COVID-19 can be,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, state Public Health Officer and director of the California Department of Public Health.

COVID Around the World
Worldwide, more than 17.4 million people have been infected by COVID-19 while 675,545 have died as of early Friday afternoon, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

More than 4.5 million Americans have been diagnosed with COVID-19, while the number of people in the U.S. who have died due to the virus has surpassed 153,000.

Santa Clarita Valley Friday Update
According to the latest L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 data dashboard update at 8 p.m. Wednesday, of the 46 SCV residents who have died of the virus since the pandemic began, 34 lived in the city of Santa Clarita, 4 in Castaic, 2 in Acton, 2 in Stevenson Ranch, 1 in unincorporated Bouquet Canyon, 1 in Val Verde, 1 in unincorporated Valencia and 1 in a community not yet named.

Of the 4,380 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 2,152

Castaic: 1,859 (includes Pitchess Detention Center and North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 115

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 81

Acton: 44

Val Verde: 44

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 34

Agua Dulce: 20

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 14

Elizabeth Lake: 5

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 5

Sand Canyon: 4

Bouquet Canyon: 1

Lake Hughes: 1

Saugus/Canyon Country: 1

*Note: The county is unable to break out separate numbers for Castaic and PDC/NCCF because the county uses geotagging software that cannot be changed at this time, according to officials. Click here for the LASD COVID-19 dashboard.

Henry Mayo Friday Update
Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital reported its 18th COVID-related death on Thursday, July 30, according to Patrick Moody, hospital spokesman.

The hospital is now releasing statistics on a weekly basis (Wednesdays) unless there is a drastic change in the number of cases or a death has been confirmed.

As of Thursday, of the 5,317 people tested at Henry Mayo to date, 657 tested positive, 5,808 were negative, 176 were pending, 25 patients were hospitalized in a dedicated unit receiving ICU-level care, a total of 180 COVID-19 patients have been discharged so far, and the number of deceased at the hospital stands at 18, Moody said.

Discrepancies in the testing numbers are due to some patients being tested multiple times. “Often a single patient is tested more than once,” he said.

L.A. County Demographics
Since May, the majority of cases have occurred among people between the ages of 18 and 49 years old. People between the ages of 30 and 49 years old account for the largest proportion of cases and roughly the same proportion of cases as seen since May. Other age groups are flat or decreasing slightly.

Of the 69 new deaths reported Friday, 18 people who passed away (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena) were over the age of 80 years old, 25 people who died were between 65 and 79 years old, 15 people who died were between 50 and 64 years old, and four people who died were between 30 and 49 years old. Forty-four people had underlying health conditions including 13 people over 80 years old, 17 people between 65 and 79 years old, 12 people between 50 and 64 years old, and two people between 30 and 49 years old.

Six deaths were reported by the city of Long Beach and one death was reported by the city of Pasadena.

Seventy-two people had underlying health conditions including 28 people over 80 years old, 22 people between 65 and 79 years old, 14 people between 50 and 64 years old, six people between 30 and 49 years old, and two between 18 and 29 years old. Five deaths were reported by the city of Long Beach and one death was reported by the city of Pasadena.

Countywide, 92% of people who died had underlying health conditions.

Upon further investigation, 42 cases reported earlier were not L.A. County residents.

Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 4,321 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health): 48% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 25% among white residents, 15% among Asian residents, 11% among African American/Black residents, less than 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families who are grieving a loved one lost to COVID-19. I know you’re hurting, and I know these are incredibly trying times,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health.

“As we are seeing increases these past few days in the numbers of people dying from COVID-19, the reality of the devastation cannot be ignored,” Ferrer said. “Nor can we ignore the reality that there are actions each person can take to prevent these tragic outcomes. Together, we can slow the spread of this deadly virus with simple acts of respect and kindness — wear a face covering, avoid gathering with people you don’t live with, stay home as much as possible, and practice hand hygiene. Together, we can heal.”

Events & Gatherings Still Prohibited
When people gather with people outside of their household it increases the risk of COVID-19 spread.

All events and gatherings, unless specifically allowed by Health Officer Orders remain prohibited. The more an individual interacts with others at a gathering and the longer that interaction lasts, the higher the potential risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 and for COVID-19 spreading.

The higher the level of community transmission in the area that the gathering is being held, the higher the risk of COVID-19 spreading during a gathering.

Businesses Required to Report Outbreaks
Businesses are also responsible for helping to slow the spread of COVID-19 and they must report COVID-19 outbreaks to Public Health. This is a key element in the county’s recovery journey.

Health Officer Orders require businesses with three or more known cases of COVID-19 over the span of 14 days to report the outbreak to Public Health.

Employers who have one known case within the workplace must have a protocol that requires that person to self-isolate at home and anyone exposed to self-quarantine.

Residents are also encouraged to report suspected outbreaks and notify the department if their employer isn’t protecting them by following the critical infection control protocols in place. Residents can call 888-700-9995. These tips can be submitted anonymously.

L.A. County Public Health’s Reopening Protocols, COVID-19 Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Roadmap to Recovery, Recovery Dashboard, and additional things you can do to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

Note on California Hospitalization Numbers
Since July 23, hospitalization numbers have reflected a change in reporting requirements that were implemented by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The change resulted in historical data from eight non-reporting facilities not being part of recent updates, resulting in lower numbers. This data will be added back in as soon as it is available.

A total of California 37 counties including Los Angeles and Ventura are required to close indoor operations for certain sectors based on the July 13 order to slow community transmission.

See the complete list of counties here.

California Testing
There have been 7,811,041 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 177,201 over the prior 24-hour reporting period.

More than 85 community testing sites offer free, confidential testing: Find a COVID-19 Testing Site.

The California Department of Public Health released updated testing guidance on July 23 that focuses on testing hospitalized individuals with signs or symptoms of COVID-19 and people being tested as part of the investigation and management of outbreaks, including contact tracing.

The testing guidance also prioritizes individuals who have COVID-19 symptoms and individuals without symptoms who fall into high-risk categories, including people who live and work in nursing homes, homeless shelters and prisons, healthcare workers, and patients in hospitals.

The new guidance will ensure that Californians who most need tests get them even if there are limited supplies.

California Demographics
Overall, for adults 18 and older, Latinos, African Americans and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are dying at disproportionately higher levels.

The proportion of COVID-19 deaths in African Americans is more than one-and-a-half times their population representation across all adult age categories. For Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, overall numbers are low, but almost double between the proportion of COVID-19 deaths and their population representation.

More males are dying from COVID-19 than females, in line with national trends.

More information is available at COVID-19 Race and Ethnicity Data.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)
Each week, the California Department of Public Health updates the number of cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported in the state.

As of July 28, 25 cases of MIS-C have been reported statewide.

To protect patient confidentiality in counties with fewer than 11 cases, we are not providing total counts at this time.

MIS-C is a rare inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19 that can damage multiple organ systems. MIS-C can require hospitalization and be life-threatening.

Parents should be aware of the signs and symptoms of MIS-C including fever that does not go away, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, neck pain, rash, bloodshot eyes or feeling tired.

Contact your child’s doctor immediately if your child has these symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment of patients are critical to preventing long-term complications.

Protect Yourself and Your Family
Every person has a role to play. Protecting yourself and your family comes down to common sense:

* Staying home except for essential needs/activities following local and state public health guidelines when patronizing approved businesses. To the extent that sectors are re-opened, Californians may leave their homes to work at, patronize, or otherwise engage with those businesses, establishments or activities.

* Practicing social distancing

* Wearing a cloth face mask when out in public

* Washing hands with soap and water for a minimum of 20 seconds

* Avoiding touching eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands

* Covering a cough or sneeze with your sleeve, or disposable tissue. Wash your hands afterward

* Avoiding close contact with people who are sick

* Staying away from work, school or other people if you become sick with respiratory symptoms like fever and cough

* Following guidance from public health officials

What to Do if You Think You’re Sick
Call ahead: If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough or shortness of breath), call your health care provider before seeking medical care so that appropriate precautions can be taken. More than 85 community testing sites also offer free, confidential testing: Find a COVID-19 Testing Site.

It’s important if someone thinks they could be positive for COVID-19 and are awaiting testing results to stay at home and act as if they are positive. This means self-isolating for 10 days and 72 hours after symptoms and fever subside. If a person tests positive for COVID-19, they should plan on receiving a call from a public health specialist to discuss how to protect themselves and others, to find out where they may have been, and who they were in close contact with while infectious.

California COVID-19 Data and Tools
A wide range of data and analysis guides California’s response to COVID-19. The state is making the data and its analytical tools available to researchers, scientists and the public at covid19.ca.gov.

* The Statewide COVID-19 Dashboard

* The California COVID-19 Assessment Tool (CalCAT)

* State Cases and Deaths Associated with COVID-19 by Age Group

* COVID-19 Race & Ethnicity Data

* COVID-19 Hospital Data and Case Statistics

* View additional datasets at the California Open Data Portal (including Testing Data, PPE Logistics Data, Hospital Data, Homeless Impact and more)

Consolidated guidance is available on the California Department of Public Health’s Guidance webpage.

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Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus (COVID-19):

* Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

* California Department of Public Health

* Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

* Spanish

* World Health Organization

* Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 Dashboard

L.A. County residents can also call 2-1-1.

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Here’s the L.A. County incident update for Friday, July 31, 2020:

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