The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on Monday confirmed 9 new deaths and 3,160 new cases of COVID-19, as Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital reported its 16th COVID-related death to date, bringing SCV’s total to 41.

There has been a total of 3,947 COVID-19 cases confirmed in the SCV to date, including 1,808 in the city of Santa Clarita.

For the second straight day, Public Health confirmed the highest number of new hospitalizations reported in a day with 2,232 people currently hospitalized, surpassing Sunday’s count of 2,216 people.

Of the 2,232 confirmed COVID-19 cases currently hospitalized, 26% of these people are confirmed cases in the ICU and 19% are confirmed cases on ventilators.

To date, Public Health has identified 159,045 positive cases of COVID-19 and a total of 4,104 deaths across all areas of L.A. County.

The decrease in deaths may reflect a reporting lag from over the weekend.

According to Public Health records last updated 8 p.m. Sunday, July 19, 41 SCV residents have died of the virus to date: 33 resided in the city of Santa Clarita, 2 in Acton, 2 in Castaic, 1 in Val Verde, 1 in unincorporated Valencia, 1 in unincorporated Bouquet Canyon, and 1 in a community not yet named.

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

“Each day, we are thinking of the many families in L.A. County who have lost loved ones to COVID-19. We are deeply sorry for your loss and send our deepest condolences,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “We’re also thinking of the many people who are hospitalized and fighting to get well. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.”

California Snapshot
Statewide, the California Department of Public Health on Monday confirmed a total of 391,538 cases as of July 19 (up 6,846), with 7,694 deaths (up 9) from the disease.

There were 6,921 confirmed hospitalizations and 1,941 ICU hospitalizations in California.

As of July 19, local health departments have reported 19,734 confirmed positive cases in healthcare workers and 107 deaths statewide.

The 7-day average more accurately describes trends in the number of cases. California’s 7-day average number of new cases is 8,911 per day, an increase of 700 above the 7-day average of 8,211 from the week prior.

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

Santa Clarita Valley Monday Update
Of the 3,947 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 1,808

Castaic: 1,836 (includes Pitchess Detention Center and North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 92

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 65

Acton: 40

Val Verde: 37

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 29

Agua Dulce: 15

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 11

Elizabeth Lake: 5

Newhall (unincorporated portion): 4

Sand Canyon: 2

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 Monday Update
Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital reported its 16th COVID-related death on Monday, July 20, according to Patrick Moody, hospital spokesman.

As of Monday, of the 4,793 people tested at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital to date, 555 tested positive, 5,063 were negative, 339 were pending, 26 patients were hospitalized in a dedicated unit receiving ICU-level care (up 3 from a week ago) and a total of 151 COVID-19 patients have been discharged so far, 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,” Moody said.

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.

L.A. County Testing, Contact Tracing
Testing results are available for more than 1,540,000 individuals with 10% of all people testing positive. The cumulative positivity rate has increased from 9% to 10%.

The majority of all cases have occurred in people under the age of 41 years old with more than 52% of people younger than 41 years old infected with COVID-19.

As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations continue to increase, Public Health is providing $10 million to community-based organizations, particularly in the hardest-hit communities, to encourage participation with case investigation and contact tracing efforts to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

Public Health is also piloting a $20 gift card incentive program to thank individuals for participating in the hour-long contact tracing interview.

“Contact tracing is a valuable tool for slowing the spread of COVID-19, and that’s why we’re providing $10 million to community-based organizations and piloting a $20 gift card incentive for full participation in the interview process,” Ferrer said.

“But contact tracing cannot slow this virus on its own,” she said. “We need our residents and our businesses to heed public health directives. This is truly a community effort. Together, we have the power to slow the devastating spread of this virus.”

Contact tracing requires trained public health specialists to interview individuals who have a positive COVID-19 lab result to gain information about their risks, possible exposures, and close contacts and to ensure that the person who is positive is connected to support while they isolate from others. As of July 7, a total number of 92,523 confirmed positive cases are part of case investigations.

If a person has a positive lab result for COVID-19, expect a public health specialist from L.A. County Public Health to contact them by phone to interview about possible exposures and to identify others who may have also been exposed to the infection. They will leave a call back number if necessary. If they cannot reach the patient by phone, they will send a letter.

Please answer Public Health’s calls and call them back if they leave a message.

The information is protected and cannot be shared with others except in emergency situations. Please also note a public health specialist will never ask for a social security number, payment or documented status.

Remember that if you think you could be positive and are awaiting testing results, to stay at home and act as if you are positive for COVID-19. This means self-isolating for 10 days and 72 hours after symptoms and fever subside.

The success of contact tracing depends on the timeliness of the testing laboratory to report positive COVID-19 test results to Public Health, whether the report contains the individual’s complete and correct contact information, as well as whether individuals respond timely to Public Health’s case interview and contact tracer calls and emails. About 70% of the interviews are completed.

Public Health has a dedicated call line for confirmed cases of COVID-19. If you have not yet connected with a public health specialist or need more information on services, call toll-free at 1-833-540-0473. Residents who do not have COVID-19 should continue to call 211 for resources or more information.

L.A. County Demographics, Testing
Of the nine new deaths, six people that passed away (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena) were over the age of 65 years old and two people who died were between the ages of 41 and 65 years. Five people had underlying health conditions including four people over the age of 65 years old and one person between the ages of 41 to 65 years old. One death was reported by the city of Long Beach.

Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 3,820 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health); 47% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 26% 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.

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

Best Protections — Now More than Ever
Business owners and residents need to make sure they are doing their part to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Current Health Officer Orders require business owners to close indoor operations at many businesses and take immediate action to implement strategies that protect workers and customers.

Public Health urges everyone to avoid the Three C’s: Crowded places, Confined spaces and Close contact with others not in your household.
Everyone should always wear a face covering securely over your nose and mouth and keep six feet apart from others not in your household when out in public. Public Health reminds everyone that you remain safer at home.

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 July 13 Reopenings Rollback
A total of 32 California counties accounting for 80 percent of the state’s population including Los Angeles and Ventura are now required by the California Department of Public Health to close indoor operations for certain sectors based on the state’s July 13 order to slow community transmission.

See the complete list of counties here.

California County Monitoring Data
California is using data and science to respond to COVID-19. Data by county gives Californians insight into how their county is doing and provides an early indication of developing areas of concern.

Counties on the County Monitoring List for three or more consecutive days must close indoor operations for additional activities.

For more information, visit the County Data Monitoring webpage.

California Testing
There have been 6,414,321 tests conducted in California, an increase of 127,469 over the prior 24-hour reporting period.

These numbers include data from commercial, private and academic labs, including Quest, LabCorp, Kaiser, University of California and Stanford, and the 25 state and county health labs currently testing.

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

The California Department of Public Health released updated testing guidance on July 14 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.

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:

* 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.

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Here’s the L.A. County incident report for Monday, July 20:

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