The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday three new deaths and 1,537 new cases of COVID-19, with 28,705 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

As Los Angeles County sees more than a seven-times increase in new cases since the June 15 reopening, the Los Angeles County Health Officer Order will be modified to require masking for everyone while indoors, regardless of vaccination status.

To date, Public Health identified 1,262,578 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 24,566 deaths. Of the three new deaths reported Thursday, one person that passed away was over the age of 80, and two people who passed were between the ages of 50 and 64. Testing results are available for more than 7,142,000 individuals with 16% of people testing positive. There are 406 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 22% of these people are in the ICU.

Community transmission of COVID-19 has rapidly increased from Moderate to Substantial, based on the trend in daily new cases of COVID-19. Wearing a mask when indoors reduces the risk of both getting and transmitting the virus. This additional layer of protection can help to slow the spread and does not limit business occupancy and operations.

The L.A. County indoor masking requirements for everyone will be effective Saturday, July 17 at 11:59 p.m. Some exceptions will apply, similar to masking requirements that were in place prior to the June 15 reopening. The modified Health Officer Order will be posted online by Friday, July 16 and will become effective at 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, July 17.

On June 15, the day of the full reopening, the County saw 210 new cases and Thursday the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirms the highest number of new COVID-19 cases since mid-March with 1,537 new cases. Thursday’s test positivity rate is 3.7%; on June 15, the test positivity rate was around 0.5%

Because of this rapid rise, as well as the increasing presence of the more easily transmitted Delta variant of the virus, and the millions of people potentially at risk of infection, together we must reduce our risk of infection and our risk for potentially infecting others.

Tracking the proliferation of the Delta variant is a priority because the Delta variant is more easily spread between people – more than other variants of concern. And while emerging data affirms that fully vaccinated people are well protected from severe infections with Delta variants, people with only one vaccine are not as well-protected, and there is evidence that a very small number of fully vaccinated individuals can become infected and may be able to infect others. From June 27 to July 3, the number of sequenced Delta variants was 124, 71% of all sequences collected that week. Given that slightly under 4 million residents in L.A. County are not yet vaccinated, the risk of increased spread of this variant within the County remains high.

**More from Los Angeles County Public Health further below**

Santa Clarita Valley Thursday Update
As of 6:30 p.m. Thursday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard remained unchanged from Wednesday, with a total of 308 (revised down from 309) COVID-19 related deaths in the SCV since the pandemic began.

The following is the community breakdown of the 308 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

266 in Santa Clarita

16 in Castaic (**revised initially from 18)

6 in Acton

6 in Stevenson Ranch

4 in unincorporated Canyon Country

3 in Agua Dulce

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 28,705 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 21,021

Castaic: 3,807

(includes Pitchess Detention Center and North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 1,198

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 872

Acton: 506

Val Verde: 343

Agua Dulce: 295

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 203

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 137

Elizabeth Lake: 82

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 69

Bouquet Canyon: 49

Lake Hughes: 42

Saugus/Canyon Country: 44

Sand Canyon: 18

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 15

Placerita Canyon: 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.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Thursday Update
As of Thursday, Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital had zero cases pending, 12 patients hospitalized, a total of 1,269 patients treated and discharged since the pandemic began, and no additional deaths, hospital spokesman Patrick Moody confirmed.

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

L.A. County

“We share our deepest condolences with those of you who have lost friends, loved ones, and family during this difficult time,” said Muntu Davis, MD, MPH, Los Angeles County Health Officer. “We expect to keep masking requirements in place until we begin to see improvements in our community transmission of COVID-19. But waiting for us to be at high community transmission level before making a change would be too late. Masking indoors must again become a normal practice by all, regardless of vaccination status, so that we can stop the trends and level of transmission we are currently seeing. We continue to urge all eligible residents to get vaccinated in order to protect themselves and their family and friends. Becoming fully vaccinated against COVID-19 remains the best protective action that people can take if they are eligible for it. Although not at 100%, it significantly reduces the risk of infection and, for the small number of people that get infected, it reduces the risk of hospitalization and death once you are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.”

As of July 11, more than 10,712,037 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered to people across Los Angeles County. Of these, 5,946,447 were first doses and 4,763,590 were second doses. Among L.A. County residents 16 and over, 69% have received one dose of vaccine and 61% have been fully vaccinated. Among L.A. County seniors 65 and over, 88% have received one dose of vaccine and 78% have been fully vaccinated.

While requiring masks in schools is an excellent way to prevent transmission among children, now is a great time to plan on vaccinating your children who are 12 and older against COVID-19 before the school year starts. The Pfizer vaccine is approved for use in children aged 12 and older. If your child begins their two-dose series for the Pfizer vaccine today, they would be able to get their second dose of the vaccine on August 5 and would be fully vaccinated as of August 19. As a reminder the first and second doses of this vaccine need to be given three weeks apart, and a person is not considered fully vaccinated until two weeks after the second vaccine.

Beginning tomorrow, Friday, July 17 through next Thursday, July 22 at County-run vaccination sites, LA City sites, and St. John’s Well Child and Family Center sites, everyone 18 and older coming to get a vaccine will have an opportunity to win one of seven packages of tickets to family fun at the Staples Center, including performances by the Harlem Globetrotters, Disney on Ice, and the Gold Over America tour starring Simone Biles. The Celine Dion, Grupo Firma, Kane Brown, Luke Bryan, and Dan and Shay at Staples Center tickets, and box seats to four classical concerts at the Hollywood Bowl sweepstakes is in effect through today.

To find a vaccination site near you, to make an appointment at vaccination sites, and much more, Visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish) 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 or scheduling a home-visit if you are homebound. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.

County Reopening Protocols, COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard, COVID-19 Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Roadmap to Recovery, Recovery Dashboard, and additional actions you can take to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

California Thursday

California Department of Public Health confirmed Thursday 3,743,714 cases and 63,533 deaths to date. There are 1,731 confirmed hospitalizations and 379 ICU hospitalizations in the state.

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

There were 3,622 newly reported confirmed cases Wednesday.

The 7-day positivity rate is 3.5%.

There have been 71,327,825 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 105,754 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of July 15, providers have reported administering a total of 42,707,762 vaccine doses statewide. The CDC reports that 48,703,855 doses have been delivered to entities within the state. Numbers do not represent true day-to-day change as reporting may be delayed. For more vaccination data, visit the COVID-19 Vaccine Data Dashboard.

Health Care Workers

As of July 14, local health departments have reported 114,175 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 477 deaths statewide.

Vaccine Eligibility Update

Individuals aged 12+ are eligible for vaccination. Visit myturn.ca.gov to make an appointment. Individuals aged 17 and younger may need the consent of a parent or legal guardian for vaccination. Visit Vaccinate All 58 to learn more about the safe and effective vaccines available.

Testing Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of July 4 to July 10, the average time patients waited for test results was under one day. During this same time period, 86% of patients received test results in one day and 96% received them within two days.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

As of July 12, there have been 570 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.

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.