On Monday, Los Angeles County Public Health officials confirmed that the State and L.A. County will be keeping the current masking guidance until June 15 to remain in alignment with the L.A. County Health Officer Order of May 3.

While the County’s metrics continue to remain low and stable, there continues to be COVID-19 transmission in California, particularly among those who are not fully vaccinated.

For that reason, the State will be keeping its current masking guidance until June 15, and L.A. County will do the same and remain in alignment with the Los Angeles County Health Officer Order of May 3.

It is important to note that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announcement last week was not meant to eliminate current safety modifications at local and state levels, and the CDC acknowledged the importance of maintaining local protections.

Masks are still required for everyone at:

– Large events, public transportation, retail, and business establishments

– Workplaces (under Cal/OSHA masking/distancing requirements)

Masks are still required for all unvaccinated people:

– Outdoors anytime distancing cannot be maintained

Masks are still not required for fully vaccinated people:

– Outdoors unless attending crowded events

– Indoor and outdoor visits with other fully vaccinated people and with unvaccinated people from one household without high-risk people

In addition, Public health confirmed 4 new deaths and 161 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, with 27,858 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

The number of cases and deaths may reflect reporting delays over the weekend. Of the four new deaths reported today, two people that passed away were over the age of 80, and two people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79.

“We extend our love and prayers to everyone who has lost loved ones during this tragedy and are hopeful that even as we collectively mourn our great losses, deaths will continue to remain low in the weeks ahead,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health.

To date, Public Health identified 1,237,561 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 24,097 deaths.

There are 322 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for nearly 6,650,000 individuals with 17% of people testing positive.

Today’s daily test positivity rate is 0.4%.

California Monday Snapshot

Statewide, as of Sunday, May 13, California Department of Public Health officials confirmed 3,665,904 COVID-19 cases (up 995) with 61,510 deaths from the disease (up 11) since the pandemic began.

Numbers may not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed.

As of May 16, local health departments have reported 110,255 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 457 deaths statewide.

The 7-day positivity rate is 0.9%.

There have been 63,347,945 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 177,223 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of May 17, providers have reported administering a total of 34,536,581 vaccine doses statewide. The CDC reports that 43,145,000 doses have been delivered to entities within the state.

Numbers do not represent true day-to-day change as reporting may be delayed.

Mask Guidance

California will keep its existing guidance around masks in place until June 15 when California aims to fully reopen the economy. As of May 3, 2021, face coverings are no longer required outdoors except at crowded events, and for unvaccinated people, when physical distancing cannot be maintained. In indoor settings outside of one’s home, including public transportation and schools, face coverings continue to be required regardless of vaccination status.

After June 15, California plans to implement the CDC’s guidelines around masking to allow fully vaccinated Californians to go without a mask in most indoor settings. This four-week period will give Californians time to prepare for this change while we continue our relentless focus on delivering vaccines, particularly in underserved communities. CDPH urges all Californians to get vaccinated to ensure that infection and hospitalization rates remain low across the state and that we can all return to the activities we love.

See more California information later in this report.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Monday Update

As of Friday, the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital had zero cases pending, three patients were hospitalized in a dedicated COVID-19 unit, and a total of 1,231 patients had been treated and discharged since the pandemic began, hospital spokesman Patrick Moody said.

There were no additional deaths, keeping the total deaths at 147 people to date. The most recent death was March 21.

Privacy laws prohibit Henry Mayo from releasing the community of residence for patients who die at the hospital; residence info is reported by the L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 dashboard, which generally lags 48 hours behind.

Santa Clarita Valley Monday Update

As of 6 p.m. Sunday, the L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 dashboard remains unchanged from last week’s update with 304 deaths among Santa Clarita Valley residents since the pandemic began.

The following is the community breakdown of the 304 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

260 in Santa Clarita

18 in Castaic

6 in Acton

6 in Stevenson Ranch

3 in Agua Dulce

4 in unincorporated Canyon Country

1 in unincorporated Bouquet Canyon

1 in Elizabeth Lake

1 in Lake Hughes

1 in Newhall

1 in unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country

1 in Valencia

1 in Val Verde

Of the 27,858 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

* City of Santa Clarita: 20,399

* Castaic: 3,735 (incl. Pitchess Detention Center & North County Correctional Facility*)

* Stevenson Ranch: 1,152

* Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 846

* Acton: 475

* Val Verde: 337

* Agua Dulce: 282

* Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 194

* Saugus (unincorporated portion): 132

* Elizabeth Lake: 76

* Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 68

* Bouquet Canyon: 47

* Lake Hughes: 42

* Saugus/Canyon Country: 40

* Sand Canyon: 17

* San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 15

* Placerita Canyon: 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.

L.A. County Demographics — Cases by Age Group (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena)

* 0 to 4: 29244

* 5 to 11: 56058

* 12 to 17: 70188

* 18 to 29: 277974

* 30 to 49: 390001

* 50 to 64: 226147

* 65 to 79: 89978

* over 80: 32833

* Under Investigation 647

L.A. County Vaccine Update

As of May 14, more than 9,013,851 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered to people across Los Angeles County.

Of these, 5,326,360 were first doses and 3,687,491 were second doses. As of May 14, 58% of L.A. County residents 12 and older have received first doses and 44% have received two doses of the vaccine.

Tacking Teen Vaccinations

Public Health is tracking vaccination rates among teens since this is a newly eligible group and is delighted to report a great turnout among teens 12 to 15-years-old late last week and over the weekend.

As of late Friday, more than 15,700 12 to 15-year-old had been vaccinated – that’s in just two days of this group’s vaccination eligibility.

Public Health is also happy to report that 16 and 17-year-olds have continued to get vaccinated at a good pace: 95,356 teens in this age group, 38% of all 16 and 17-year-olds countywide, have gotten at least one vaccination.

Parents are accustomed to vaccinating their children at pediatricians’ offices, schools, and community centers, where they often know and trust the healthcare providers they see.

Our goal is to help maximize these sites’ capacity to deliver the COVID-19 vaccine, particularly the Pfizer vaccine, and as the warmer months arrive, to expand efforts to vaccinate teens in the parks, day camps, and other places where they spend their summers.

Public Health is focusing efforts on the 43 school districts located in the hardest hit communities in the county, including LAUSD. The first involves organizing school site pop-up clinics.

There are 60 school sites where pop-up clinics are providing vaccines to people in their surrounding communities.

LAUSD is hoping to send mobile teams to over 200 school sites starting next week. The second part of this strategy involves onboarding existing school-based clinics as COVID-19 vaccine providers.

Public Health continues to offer vaccinations without appointments at County-run vaccination sites while supply lasts.

Vaccine Education and Programs

The County is working with L.A. County and L.A. City Parks and Rec, Boys and Girls Club Alliance and YMCA to create partnerships aimed at educating families on vaccines and providing vaccine opportunities in cooperation with summer programs.

Public Health’s efforts are focused on making it as easy as possible for eligible L.A. County residents to get vaccinated.

This week, there are 755 sites offering vaccinations including pharmacies, clinics, community sites, and hospitals.

Many of these vaccination sites are concentrated in areas that have been hard hit by the pandemic.

Currently, you can obtain vaccines at the eight county-run sites, all the L.A. city-run sites, almost all mobile sites and many of the community sites without an appointment. Many sites are open on weekends and have evening hours.

Public Health continues to build an extensive network with pharmacies, federally qualified health centers, hospitals, health clinics, and community vaccination sites, including these large-capacity sites:

* Dodger Stadium (operated by the city of Los Angeles)

* College of the Canyons, 26455 Rockwell Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91355

* Palmdale Oasis Park Recreation Center, 3850 E Ave S, Palmdale, CA 93550

* California State University, Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St, Northridge 91330

* Pomona Fairplex, 1101 W McKinley Ave, Pomona 91768

* The Forum, 3900 W Manchester Blvd, Inglewood 90305

* L.A. County Office of Education, 12830 Columbia Way, Downey 90242

* California State University, Los Angeles, 5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles 90032 (operated by FEMA)

Public Health continues to support additional mobile vaccination teams that take vaccinations into neighborhoods to reach people who may have limited ability or time to get to one of the established vaccination sites.

These teams have set up ongoing daily sites to provide vaccines on a walk-in basis at public places such as metro stations, food markets and parks.

There are 188 sites where mobile teams will be offering vaccinations this week which are concentrated in higher-need, harder-hit areas.

Visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish) to learn how to make an appointment at vaccination sites, what verifications people will need to show at your vaccination appointment, and much more. If you don’t have internet access, can’t use a computer, or you’re over 65, you can call 1-833-540-0473 for help finding an appointment. There may be an extended wait time to speak with an operator for help making an appointment during high demand times. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.

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.

Blueprint for a Safer Economy

All counties are under the rules and framework of the Blueprint for a Safer Economy and color-coded tiers that indicate which activities and businesses are open based on local case rates and test positivity.

As always, local public health departments may implement policies that are more restrictive than the state.

Blueprint tiers are updated weekly on Tuesdays. The Blueprint summary as of May 11:

* 0 counties are currently in the Purple (widespread) Tier

* 11 counties are currently in the Red (substantial) Tier

* 38 counties are currently in the Orange (moderate) Tier

* 9 counties are in the Yellow (minimal) Tier (including L.A. County)

Find the status of activities in specific counties.

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 May 10, there have been 508 cases of MIS-C have been 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.

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.

Although very rare, COVID-19 cases among children can sometimes result a few weeks later in very serious illness known as Multi-symptom Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).

Vaccine Eligibility Update

As of May 13, vaccination appointments for individuals aged 12+ can be made by visiting myturn.ca.gov. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those between the ages of 12 and 17 to receive a vaccination. For more information on the vaccine effort, visit Vaccinate All 58.

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

California Testing & Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboardreports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results.

During the week of April 18 to April 24, the average time patients waited for test results was just under one day.

During this same time period, 83% of patients received test results in one day and 98% received them within two days.

Protect Yourself and Your Family: Your Actions Save Lives

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

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

* Avoiding non-essential travel, and practicing self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival if you leave the state.

* Keeping interactions limited to people who live in your household.

* 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.

* 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.

* Getting tested if you believe you’ve been exposed. Free, confidential testing is available statewide.

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

* Answering the call if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or local health department tries to connect.

* 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 healthcare provider before seeking medical care so that appropriate precautions can be taken.

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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