The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday 23 new deaths and 406 new cases of COVID-19, with 27,381 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

To date, Public Health identified 1,222,778 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 23,292 deaths.

Los Angeles County recently moved to the orange tier in the State’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy that allowed the County to expand permitted activities in several key sectors including bars, breweries, wineries, and distilleries, family entertainment centers, gyms, movie theatres, restaurants, retail establishments, grocery stores, and outdoor live events with required safety measures in place including masking and distancing requirements. Now that 4 million people have been vaccinated who are living in communities across the state in the Healthy Places Index quartile 1, L.A. County’s daily case rate must be at or below 5.9 new cases per 100,000 people and the County’s test positivity rate must be at or below 4.9% to remain in the orange tier. To move to the less restrictive yellow tier the County’s case rate must be less than 2 new cases per 100,000 people and test positivity must be less than 2%.

On Tuesday, the State released updated numbers; L.A. County’s adjusted case rate remained at 3.1 new cases per 100,000 people. The test positivity rate dropped from 1.5% to 1.4% and in areas with the fewest health affirming resources, L.A. County’s test positivity rate dropped from 2.1% to 1.9%.

The State also announced Tuesday, that on June 15, California will fully reopen the state if there is enough vaccine supply for Californians 16 years and older to be vaccinated and hospitalizations rates remain stable and low, especially among fully vaccinated Californians.

California Tuesday Snapshot
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) confirmed Tuesday 3,583,830 confirmed cases and 58,541 deaths to date. There are 1,989 confirmed hospitalizations and 493 ICU hospitalizations in the state.

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

There were 1,367 newly recorded confirmed cases Monday.

The 7-day positivity rate is 1.6%.

There have been 55,377,325 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 100,015 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of April 6, providers have reported administering a total of 20,267,689 vaccine doses statewide. The CDC reports that 26,126,320 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 DashboarFor more vaccination data, visit the COVID-19 Vaccine Data Dashboard.

Health Care Worker Infection Rates
As of April 5, local health departments have reported 103,471 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 444 deaths statewide.

Santa Clarita Valley Tuesday Update
As of 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard remained unchanged from Monday, recording 297 (adjusted from 299) deaths among Santa Clarita Valley residents to date.

The following is the community breakdown of the 297 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

256 lived in Santa Clarita (adjusted from 258 on Friday)

17 in Castaic

6 in Acton

5 in Stevenson Ranch

3 in Agua Dulce (adjusted from 4 on Friday)

3 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 Val Verde

1 in Valencia

Of the 27,381 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 20,043

Castaic: 3,697

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

Stevenson Ranch: 1,123

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 829

Acton: 463

Val Verde: 335

Agua Dulce: 273

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 187

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 128

Elizabeth Lake: 76

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 68

Bouquet Canyon: 47

Lake Hughes: 41

Saugus/Canyon Country: 38

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.

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Tuesday Update
As of Tuesday, there were no cases pending, three patients were hospitalized in a dedicated COVID-19 unit receiving ICU-level care, and a total of 1,197 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.

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

Of the 23 new deaths reported Tuesday, three people that passed away were over the age of 80, 12 people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, seven people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, and one person who died was between the ages of 30 and 49.

“To the many families mourning a loved one who passed away from COVID-19, we send you our deepest sympathies,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “L.A. County continues making progress and we appreciate the efforts of businesses and residents to keep everyone safe. When we follow the safety measures and keep vaccinating people efficiently, effectively and equitability, it prevents transmission and a surge in cases. The light at the end of the tunnel gets brighter every day we keep transmission low and more people get vaccinated.”

From March 15 to April 2, Public Health inspectors visited a total of 3,237 businesses, including restaurants, bars, breweries and wineries, gyms, retail establishments, hair salons and barbershops, personal care services, grocery stores, and cardrooms. Overall, the inspections revealed the majority of businesses were in compliance with most of the Health Officer Order protocols. Inspectors noted 82% of hair salons and barbershops, 86% of personal care services and 95% of restaurants were in compliance with face covering and face shield requirements, and 87% of retail establishments, 88% of restaurants and 89% grocery stores were in compliance with physical distancing measures.

Businesses not adhering to safety protocols to protect workers and customers increase the risk for COVID-19 spread. A list of non-compliant businesses that received citations can be found online. Non-compliance and dangerous conditions at businesses can be reported to Public Health by phone at 888-700-9995 or online at www.publichealth.lacounty.gov. These tips can be submitted anonymously.

There are 568 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 25% of these people are in the ICU. Testing results are available for nearly 6,142,000 individuals with 18% of people testing positive.

COVID-19 vaccine eligibility expanded to all residents 50 through 64 years old in addition to all other eligible groups. On April 15, vaccines become available to any resident in Los Angeles County who is 16 and older.

For information about vaccine appointments in L.A. County and when your turn is coming up, to sign up for a vaccination newsletter, and much more, visit www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish). Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.

The 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 Tuesday

The California Department of Public Health announced Tuesday that a total of 4 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered to Californians in some of the state’s hardest-hit communities, increasing immunity where the state’s transmission rates and disease burden have been the highest during the pandemic. With this equity metric met, and because vaccines slow the spread of disease and serious illness, the state has updated the Blueprint for a Safer Economy.

With this update, 16 counties are moving to a less restrictive tier, although local public health departments may implement policies that are more restrictive than the state. Counties moving to less restrictive tiers include Contra Costa, El Dorado, Humboldt, Imperial, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, Riverside, San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Tulare, and Ventura. The updated tier assignments take effect on Wednesday, April 7.

“California is making great progress in administering COVID-19 vaccine doses,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, Secretary of California’s Health and Human Services Agency. “We must continue to do our best to vaccinate Californians as safely and quickly as possible. Our vaccine equity focus remains the right thing to do and ensures we are having the greatest impact in reducing transmission, protecting our health care delivery system and saving lives.”

Due to the 4 million doses milestone, the Purple (Widespread) tier threshold will remain at greater than 10 cases per 100,000; the Red (Substantial) tier case rate range will narrow to 6-10 cases per 100,000; and the Orange (Moderate) tier case rate range will shift to 2-5.9 cases per 100,0000. The Yellow (Minimal) tier case rate range will shift to less than 2 cases per 100,000.

In Tuesday’s Blueprint update, CDPH also added an additional metric that will be reviewed before a county moves to a more restrictive tier. During the weekly tier assessment, if a county’s adjusted case rate and/or test positivity has fallen within a more restrictive tier for two consecutive weeks, the state reviews the county’s most recent 10 days of data – and now, also hospitalization data, to determine if there are signs of improvement to indicate the county can remain in the less restrictive tier.

On March 4, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state had set aside 40 percent of vaccine doses for the hardest-hit communities and established an equity metric to increase vaccinations in those communities. Doing so recognizes that the pandemic did not affect California communities equally. Forty percent of COVID cases and deaths have occurred in the lowest quartile of the Healthy Places Index (HPI), which provides overall scores and data that predict life expectancy and compares community conditions that shape health across the state.

The state met its 2 million goal on March 12, and just 24 days later doubled that number, reaching the 4 million doses mark.

“Administering 2 million doses in 23 days in our areas of highest need is a good indicator of the breadth of our outreach,” said Tomás Aragón, CDPH Director and State Public Health Officer. “We thank all of our local government and health care partners in working with the state to continue our work and get this vaccine administered to all Californians. In the meantime, we must all do our part by continuing to wear masks, practice physical distancing and get ourselves and our loved ones vaccinated as soon as possible.”

More information about the Blueprint for a Safer Economy is available [here] and additional details on state’s efforts to end the pandemic through equitable vaccine administration is available [here].

Vaccine Eligibility Update

With supply of vaccines expected to significantly increase in the coming weeks, the state is expanding vaccine eligibility to more Californians. Starting April 1, individuals 50 and over will be eligible to make an appointment, and individuals 16 and over will be eligible to make an appointment to be vaccinated starting on April 15. To sign up for a notification when you’re eligible for a vaccine, please visit myturn.ca.gov. For more information on the vaccine effort, visit Vaccinate All 58.

Tracking Variants

Multiple variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 have been identified globally during the COVID-19 pandemic. These genetic mutations are expected, and some emerge and then disappear, while others persist or become common. Most variants do not have a meaningful impact. Public health becomes concerned about a variant when it affects COVID-19 transmission, severity, testing, treatment or vaccine effectiveness. Get more information on the variants CDPH is currently monitoring.

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 Summary as of April 6

2 counties in the Purple (widespread) Tier

22 counties in the Red (substantial) Tier

32 counties in Orange (moderate) Tier

2 counties in Yellow (minimal) Tier

Blueprint tiers are updated weekly on Tuesdays. Find the status of activities in specific counties.

Additional Date and Updates

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

Updated Travel Advisory
California updated its travel advisory on April 1, removing the previous recommendation that Californians not travel more than 120 miles from ones’ place of residence. Postponing travel and staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19, and Californians should continue to avoid non-essential travel outside of the state. Non-essential travelers from other states or countries are strongly discouraged from entering California and should follow CDC travel guidance related to testing and self-quarantine.

Safe Schools for All Plan
Gov. Newsom released his California’s Safe Schools for All plan, California’s framework to support schools to continue operating safely in person and to expand the number of schools safely resuming in-person instruction. View the data for public schools by selecting a specific district on the School Districts Reopening Map. The map includes reported outbreaks since January 1, 2021.

Vaccinate All 58
The COVID-19 shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in California, and additional shipments will continue to arrive throughout this week. The first doses are being administered to health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities. The state is working closely with community partners and stakeholders to help ensure the vaccine is distributed and administered equitably across California. For more information, visit the CDPH COVID-19 Vaccine webpage and Vaccinate All 58.

New Testing Turnaround Time Dashboard
The testing turnaround dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of March 21 – March 27, 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.

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.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)
As of April 6, 448 case cases cases Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (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.

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 is critical to preventing long-term complications.

New Health Equity Dashboard
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted existing inequities in health that are the result of structural racism and poverty, and the disproportionate prevalence of underlying conditions such as asthma and heart disease among Latinos and African Americans. As part of its commitment to reduce health inequities and ensure the best outcomes for all Californians, the state has launched a Health Equity Dashboard on www.covid19.ca.gov. View COVID-19 Race & Ethnicity Data and Cases and Deaths by Age Group.

Popular links include:

– 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)

Your Actions Save Lives
California is experiencing the fastest increase in cases we have seen yet – faster than what we experienced at the outset of the pandemic and this summer. If COVID-19 continues to spread at this rate, it could quickly overwhelm our health care system and lead to catastrophic outcomes. Protect yourself, family, friends and community by following these prevention measures:

– Staying home except for essential needs/activities and following local and state public health guidelines when visiting businesses that are open.

– Following the Limited Stay at Home Order that requires allnon-essential work and activities to stop between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. in counties in the purple tier. The order took effect at 10 p.m. Saturday, November 21, and will remain in effect until 5 a.m. December 21.

– Staying close to home, avoiding non-essential travel, and practicing self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival if you leave the state.

– Keeping gatherings small, short and outdoors and limiting them to those 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.

– Following guidance from public health officials.

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.