The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed 16 new deaths throughout L.A. County, 1,944 new cases countywide and 55 new cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

This new data brings Los Angeles County death totals to 33,447, county case totals to 3,437,648 and Santa Clarita Valley case totals to 90,346, with 501 total SCV deaths from COVID-19 since March of 2020.

There are 669 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized.

Testing results are available for more than 12,522,412 individuals, with 24% of people testing positive.

Of the 16 new deaths reported today, two people were between the ages of 30-49, one person was between the ages of 50-64, four people were between the ages of 65-79, and eight people were aged 80 years or older. For information on the one death reported by the City of Long Beach, visit longbeach.gov Of the 16 newly reported deaths, 15 had underlying health conditions.

Today’s positivity rate is 5.2%.

SNF Residents and Staff are Encouraged to Get the New Fall Booster ASAP

Although COVID-19 metrics have recently improved in L.A. County, residents at Skilled Nursing Facilities remain at elevated risk for severe illness should they become infected. With cooler weather approaching, maximizing protection of our most vulnerable residents includes ensuring that as many residents and staff at Skilled Nursing Facilities are vaccinated in the early fall with the new COVID-19 Fall booster that has been updated to target both the most recent Omicron subvariants (BA.4/BA.5) and the original COVID-19 virus.

As of Sept. 4, 91% of Skilled Nursing Facilities residents and 98% of staff were fully vaccinated. Almost all these staff and residents are at least two months out from their last COVID vaccine dose and therefore eligible for the new Fall booster.

To improve booster coverage, all 340 Skilled Nursing Facilities have established long-term care pharmacy partners that can provide COVID vaccines/booster doses. Public Health’s mobile vaccine team is contacting all Skilled Nursing Facilities to offer additional support including onsite booster clinics for residents and staff to get the Fall booster as soon as possible. Facilities with active outbreaks are being prioritized for on-site vaccine/booster clinics.

Public Health is also assisting and following up with education and resources for Skilled Nursing Facilities including bi-weekly webinars and email communications for staff and educational materials for residents.

The 7-day average case count in the county is 1,675, a small decline from one week ago when an average of 1,745 cases were reported. The 7-day average test positivity rate is 5.2% over the past week, down slightly from one week ago when it was 5.6%.

Over the past seven days, the average number of daily COVID-positive patients in L.A. County hospitals was 713, an 8% decline from one week ago when the average number of daily COVID-positive patients per day was 772.

Deaths, which typically lag hospitalizations by several weeks, increased slightly to 14 deaths reported each day this past week, an increase from an average of 11 daily reported deaths a week ago.

For the third week in a row, L.A. County is at the Low Community Level, which reflects very little stress associated with COVID-19 on the healthcare system in L.A. County.

“I send my deepest sympathies and wishes of peace and comfort to the many families who have lost a loved one from COVID-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “While it is humbling to look back over the past 2 ½ years and be reminded of the enormity of the impact of COVID on our lives, I am also encouraged as we face our third winter with COVID because we are heading into the colder months with an updated fall booster that matches the variants currently circulating. This was not the case this past winter, when the highly infectious Omicron variant raged, nor the winter of 2020/2021 when most of us were not yet vaccinated. The work ahead is to be sure that access to the new vaccines is very easy and that everyone understands that the new Fall booster offers us our best opportunity to try and avert another terrible winter surge.”

A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

To keep workplaces and schools open, residents and workers are asked to:

– Get tested to help reduce the spread, especially if you traveled for the holidays, have had a possible exposure, or have symptoms, or are gathering with people not in your household

– Adhere to masking requirements when indoors or at crowded outdoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status

– Residents are legally required to be isolated if they have a positive COVID test result and vaccinated close contacts with symptoms and unvaccinated close contacts need to be quarantined.

For information on where you can get tested, please visit www.covid19.lacounty.gov/testing/.

For updated isolation and quarantine guidance, please visit www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and are recommended for everyone 5 years old and older to help protect against COVID-19. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. Appointments are not needed at all Public Health vaccination sites and many community sites where first, second, and third doses are available.

To find a vaccination site near you, or to make an appointment, please visit:

www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or

www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).

William S. Hart Union High School District COVID-19 Dashboard

The William S. Hart Union High School District provides ongoing information to our community regarding COVID-19 cases while maintaining confidentiality for our students and staff. The COVID-19 case data below is updated regularly to indicate any currently confirmed COVID-19 positive case in staff members or students by school site. The data below is specific to individuals who have been physically present on a District campus within 14 days of receiving a positive COVID-19 test. The District, in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, conducts contact tracing and directly notifies and provides resources for parents of students identified as close contacts (6 feet or less for 15 cumulative minutes or more).

Note: To see the communication process in the event of a positive COVID-19 case, visit https://www.hartdistrict.org/apps/pages/covid-19dashboard.

Schools Community Dashboard

Student Dashboard

Staff Dashboard

Santa Clarita Valley Friday Update

As of 4 p.m. Friday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard reported no additional deaths leaving the total number of deaths from COVID-19 in the SCV at 501.

The following is the community breakdown per L.A. County’s dashboard:

Santa Clarita: 407

Castaic: 32

Acton: 18

Stevenson Ranch: 16

Unincorporated Canyon Country: 10

Agua Dulce: 6

Val Verde: 3 (revised from 4)

Valencia: 2

Unincorporated Bouquet Canyon: 2

Elizabeth Lake: 2

Newhall: 1

Unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country: 1

Lake Hughes: 1
 

SCV Cases

Of the 90,346 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

Santa Clarita: 66,738

Castaic: 9,052

Stevenson Ranch: 5,352

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 3,275

Acton: 1,806

Val Verde: 994

Agua Dulce: 918

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 858

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 402

Elizabeth Lake: 248

Bouquet Canyon: 190

Lake Hughes: 188

Saugus/Canyon Country: 105

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 100

Sand Canyon: 57

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 41

Placerita Canyon: 22

*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.

California Thursday

The California Department of Public Health now updates COVID numbers on Thursday. The information below is from the most recent data released Thursday, Sept. 15.

Vaccinations

– 79,750,545 total vaccines administered.

– 80.3% of the eligible population (5+) has been vaccinated with at least one dose.

– 46,732 people a day are receiving COVID-19 vaccination (average daily dose count over 7 days).

Cases

– California has 10,354,899 confirmed cases to date.

– Thursday’s average case count is 4,854 (average daily case count over 7 days).

– During July 2022, unvaccinated people were 2.6 times more likely to get COVID-19 than people who were vaccinated with at least a primary series.

Testing

– The testing positivity rate is 6.2% (average rate over 7 days).

Hospitalizations

– There are 2,580 hospitalizations statewide.

– There are 316 ICU patients statewide.

– During July 2022, unvaccinated people were 3.0 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 than people who were vaccinated with at least a primary series.

Deaths

– There have been 94,747 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

– COVID-19 claims the lives of 28 Californians each day (average daily death count over 7 days).

– During July 2022, unvaccinated people were 3.6 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than people who were vaccinated with at least a primary series.

Health Care Workers

As of Sept. 14, local health departments have reported 179,957 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 590 deaths statewide.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

As of Sept. 12, there have been 1014 cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported statewide. 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.

Updated Testing Requirements for Visitors to Health Care Facilities

Beginning Saturday, Sept. 17, visitors to health care facilities, such as skilled nursing facilities and general acute care hospitals, will no longer be required to be tested or show proof of vaccination in order to visit loved ones. Visitors must continue to comply with CDPH Masking Guidance while visiting loved ones indoors in these settings.

Facilities should continue to maintain all current infection prevention practices to protect the vulnerable populations in health care facilities. In addition, they should continue to offer testing for visitors per recommendations from CDPH and/or the local public health department and have the ability to ramp up testing if it is required again at a future date.

In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in updated testing guidance, indicated screening testing is no longer recommended in general community settings. Therefore, CDPH has also updated COVID-19 testing guidance.

Preparing for a Healthy 2022-23 School Year

The Safe Schools for All Hub consolidates key resources and information related to COVID-19 and schools.

Learn more about the COVID-19 mitigation strategies to keep students, staff, and communities safe in the 2022-23 K-12 Schools Guidance.

Get more information on changes to COVID-19 testing strategies for the 2022-23 school year in the 2022-23 K-12 Schools Testing Framework.

The CDPH Testing Taskforce School Testing team has released a 2022-2023 K-12 Schools Testing Framework Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

Additional Updates

Mask Guidance: Under California’s mask guidance, universal masking is required only in specified higher risk settings like hospitals, public transit and congregate living facilities. Unvaccinated persons are required to mask in all indoor public settings. Fully vaccinated individuals are recommended to continue indoor masking when the risk may be high. Workplaces will continue to follow the COVID-19 prevention standards set by CalOSHA. Local health jurisdictions may implement requirements that are stricter than state guidance.

Slow the Spread: Get Vaccinated and Boosted for COVID-19

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection continues as a number of Californians remain unvaccinated and unboosted.

Real-world evidence continues to show that the vaccine is preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Public health officials urge Californians to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

It is recommended that every individual six months of age and older receive their primary COVID-19 vaccine series and booster dose.

It is recommended that every vaccinated person 12 years or older should get a booster as long as they received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least five months ago or they received their Johnson & Johnson vaccine at least two months ago.

Vaccination appointments can be made by visiting myturn.ca.gov or calling 1-833-422-4255. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those under age 18 to receive a vaccination. Visit Vaccinate All 58 to learn more about the safe and effective vaccines available for all Californians 5+.

Your Actions Save Lives

Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

Keep California Healthy
Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

– Get vaccinated when it’s your turn. Californians age 16+ are eligible to make an appointment.

– If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches), call your health care provider.

– If you believe you have been exposed, get tested. Free, confidential testing is available statewide.

– Keep gatherings small and outdoors and follow state and local public health guidance.

– Wear a mask and get the most out of masking – an effective mask has both good fit and good filtration.

– Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

– Delay non-essential travel outside of California until you are fully vaccinated. Follow California’s travel advisory.

– Avoid close contact with people who are sick and stay home from work and school if you feel ill.

– Add your phone to the fight by signing up for COVID-19 exposure notifications from CA Notify.

– Answer the call or text if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or your local health department tries to connect.

Additional data and udpates:

Tracking COVID-19 in California

State Dashboard – Daily COVID-19 data

County Map – Local data, including tier status and ICU capacity

Data and Tools – Models and dashboards for researchers, scientists, and the public

Blueprint for a Safer Economy– Data for establishing tier status

COVID-19 Race & Ethnicity Data – Weekly updated Race & Ethnicity data

Cases and Deaths by Age Group – Weekly updated Deaths by Age Group data

Health Equity Dashboard – See how COVID-19 highlights existing inequities in health

Tracking Variants – Data on the variants California is currently monitoring

Safe Schools for All Hub – Information about safe in-person instruction

School Districts Reopening Map – data on public schools and reported outbreaks

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

– Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

– California Department of Public Health

– Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

– Spanish

– World Health Organization

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

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.

For more information about what Californians can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19, visit Coronavirus (COVID-19) in California.

California continues to issue guidance on preparing and protecting California from COVID-19. Consolidated guidance is available on the California Department of Public Health’s Guidance webpage.