The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on Monday confirmed two new deaths and 881 new cases of confirmed COVID-19, as Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital reported its 26th death.

That brings the SCV’s totals to 6,578 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 67 deaths since the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11.

The low number of new deaths and new cases reported Monday reflects a reporting lag from over the weekend, according to Public Health officials.

To date, the department has identified 282,982 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County, and a total of 6,773 deaths.

Upon further investigation, 34 cases reported earlier were not county residents.

There are 693 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 countywide, and 26% of them are in the ICU.

Test results are available for more than 2,826,000 county residents, with 9% of all people testing positive.

“We wish healing and peace to the families and friends that are grieving the loss of their loved one to COVD-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health.

Indigenous Peoples’ Day

“Today we celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day to honor the history, cultures, and contributions of American Indians and Alaska Natives,” Ferrer said.

“COVID-19 has amplified a history of unequal access to health care and healthy environments, which has led to a history of disproportionality in health outcomes,” Ferrer said. “Currently, American Indian and Alaska Native people face a disproportionate case rate of 1,117 cases per 100,000 people. As we observe Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we ask everyone to be caring neighbors and limit COVID-19 spread by practicing physical distancing, wearing a face covering, and washing your hands frequently.”

California Monday Snapshot

Statewide, as of Sunday, October 11, the California Department of Public Health confirmed a total of 850,028 COVID-19 cases (up 3,449), with 16,572 deaths from the disease (up 8).

There are 2,196 confirmed hospitalizations and 604 ICU hospitalizations in the state, a downward trend.

California’s 7-day positivity rate is 2.6% and the 14-day positivity rate is 2.6%, holding steady.

As of October 11, local health departments have reported 41,402 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 192 deaths statewide.

There have been 16,191,341 tests COVID-19 tests conducted in California, an increase of 144,337 over the prior 24-hour reporting period.

Numbers do not represent true day-over-day change as these results include cases from prior to yesterday.

COVID Surges Again in U.S., Still World Leader in Cases, Deaths

Thirty-one states have growing rates of COVID-19 cases as of Monday, according to health officials. Read more here.

Worldwide, 37,686,296 people have been infected by COVID-19 while 1,078,699 people have died as of 12:24 Monday afternoon Pacific Time, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Since the pandemic began, more than 7,792,816 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 214,985.

The United States has the world’s highest numbers of cases and deaths. By comparison, No. 2 Brazil’s death toll is 150,488. India, at No. 2 in cases, had confirmed 7,120,538 cases and 109,150 deaths as of early Monday afternoon.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Monday Update
On Monday, Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia reported its 26th COVID-19 death at the hospital since the pandemic began, spokesman Patrick Moody said.

Henry Mayo releases statistics weekly, generally on Wednesdays, unless there is a drastic change in the number of cases or a COVID-related death has been confirmed, he said.

As of Monday, October 12, of the 9,101 people tested at Henry Mayo to date, 953 tested positive, 10,756 were negative, 4 were pending, 15 patients were hospitalized in a dedicated unit receiving ICU-level care (up 6 from last week), and a total of 274 COVID-19 patients have been treated and discharged so far.

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

Santa Clarita Valley Monday Update

As of 8 p.m. Saturday, October 10, the latest update to its COVID-19 data dashboard, L.A. County Public Health reported 66 deaths in the Santa Clarita Valley since the pandemic began, but had not yet logged the fatality Henry Mayo reported Monday.

Of the 67 SCV residents who have died, 55 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, and 1 in unincorporated Valencia, and 1 in a community not yet identified.

Privacy laws prohibit the hospital from releasing the community of residence for patients who die.

Of the 6,578 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 3,802

Castaic: 2,113 (includes Pitchess Detention Center and North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 183

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 157

Val Verde: 88

Acton: 77

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 50

Agua Dulce: 29

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 28

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 14

Bouquet Canyon: 10

Saugus/Canyon Country: 9

Elizabeth Lake: 7

Sand Canyon: 7

Lake Hughes: 4

*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.

Community Spread of COVID-19 Continues

COVID-19 continues to spread and remains easily spread among people who are in close contact with an infected person. If you were in a crowd with non-household members, especially if people weren’t wearing face coverings and were shouting, chanting, and/or singing, you may have been exposed to COVID-19 if an infected person was also there. People can pass the virus to others, even before they know they have it.

It is very important that you stay away from other people, especially those at greater risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19, and monitor yourself for symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 full days. This is essential to prevent you from unintentionally spreading COVID-19 to other people.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, masks are strongly encouraged in settings where people might raise their voices, such as shouting, chanting, or singing. When someone raises their voice, their respiratory droplets, which carry the virus, spread farther.

Public Health encourages you to get tested if you have been in a crowd or gathering where people were close together and not wearing face coverings and/or not keeping their distance. By finding out if you are positive, even if you have no symptoms yet, you can quickly take steps to prevent your family, friends or coworkers from becoming infected by you and get the medical care you need.

More L.A. County Demographics: Age

Of the two new deaths reported Monday, one person who died was between 65 and 79 years old and one person was between 50 and 64 years old.

Both people who died had underlying health conditions, as did 93% of people who died countywide.

Cases by Age Group (Los Angeles County only — excluding Long Beach and Pasadena)

* 0 to 4 4558

* 5 to 11 9831

* 12 to 17 12180

* 18 to 29 66575

* 30 to 49 91678

* 50 to 64 51614

* 65 to 79 20459

* over 80 9423

* Under Investigation 1622

More L.A. County Demographics: Race/Ethnicity

Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 6,378 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health); 51% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 23% among White residents, 14% among Asian residents, 10% among African American/Black residents, less than 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races.

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.

California Blueprint for a Safer Economy

Governor Newsom’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy imposes risk-based criteria on tightening and loosening COVID-19 allowable activities and expands the length of time between changes to assess how any movement affects the trajectory of the disease.

Californians can go to covid19.ca.gov to find out where their county falls and what activities are allowable in each county.

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

The testing turnaround dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. California has worked to reduce testing turnaround times in recent weeks to help curb the spread of the virus.

During the week of September 27 to October 3, the average time patients waited for test results was 1.2 days. During this same time period, 69 percent of patients received test results in 1 day and 92 percent received them within two days. The testing turnaround time dashboard (PDF) is updated weekly.

As of September 22, California’s testing capacity and turnaround time have improved. As a result and until further notice, all four tiers in the Testing Prioritization Guidance originally dated July 14, 2020, will have equal priority for testing.

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 October 5, 104 cases of MIS-C have been reported statewide.

To protect patient confidentiality in counties with fewer than 11 cases, CDPH is 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, 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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