The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday 15 new deaths and 2,067 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, with 29,581 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Case rates are increasing across all adult age groups with the highest case rate increases occurring in adults between the ages of 18 and 29 years old with a nine-fold increase, from 40 to 350 cases per 100,000 over the course of the past month. And case rates have increased 7.5-fold among 30-to-49 year-olds, from 33 to 247 cases per 100,000.

There are 825 people with COVID -19 currently hospitalized. An increase in hospitalizations typically occurs two to three weeks after cases increase. Currently, 0.21% of positive cases are hospitalized; this is much lower than the 5.76% of cases hospitalized during the winter surge.

To date, Public Health has identified 1,287,831 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 24,643 deaths. Testing results are available for over 7,270,000 individuals with 16% of people testing positive. Tuesday’s daily test positivity rate is 5.7%.

Of the new deaths reported Tuesday, five people that passed away were over the age of 80, three people that passed away are between the ages of 65 and 79 years old, four people who passed away were between the ages of 50 and 64 years old and two people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49 years old. One death was reported by the city of Pasadena.

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

Santa Clarita Valley Tuesday Update
As of 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard remained unchanged from Monday, with a total of 309 COVID-19 related deaths in the SCV since the pandemic began.

The following is the community breakdown of the 309 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

267 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 29,581 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 21,691

Castaic: 3,878

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

Stevenson Ranch: 1,260

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 899

Acton: 517

Val Verde: 350

Agua Dulce: 305

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 213

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 139

Elizabeth Lake: 84

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 69

Bouquet Canyon: 51

Lake Hughes: 43

Saugus/Canyon Country: 45

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 Tuesday Update
As of deadline Tuesday, there was no new available data from Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital. However, on Monday, the hospital had zero tests pending, 22 patients hospitalized, a total of 1,282 patients treated and discharged since the pandemic began, and no additional deaths, hospital spokesman Patrick Moody confirmed.

To date, there have been 151 deaths since the pandemic began.

“As we have stated before, the most effective way to prevent a stay in the hospital for COVID-19 is to get vaccinated,” said Moody.

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

“For all the families, friends, and coworkers mourning the passing of a loved one to COVID-19, we wish you healing and peace,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “While it is critically important to pay attention to the rapid acceleration of cases we are currently seeing, most of which are a consequence of infection with the highly transmissible Delta variant, we should also note that this pandemic is now not behaving the same way that it was in the month before vaccines were widely available. During the winter surge last year, when case rates were increasing four- or five-fold over the course of a month, we saw hospitalizations multiplying in direct proportion to case rates. Today, even though our case rates have increased by up to nine times, hospitalization rates are, at most, doubling. Having half of our County population vaccinated is largely responsible for this positive trend. It’s because of the differences in trends that we are hopeful our hospitals and healthcare providers will not suffer the same strain they endured last winter.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its masking guidance Tuesday in response to new science related to the Delta variant. In areas with substantial and high transmission, CDC recommends fully vaccinated people wear masks in public, indoor settings to help prevent the spread of the Delta variant and protect others. The agency is also recommending that everyone in grade schools wear masks indoors, including teachers, staff, students, and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.

L.A. County already requires masking indoors in all public settings and K-12 schools; with increased vaccinations and indoor masking, the County should be able to return to lower rates of transmission.

L.A. County has administered nearly 11 million total vaccine doses to residents 12 years and older, including more than 6 million first doses and nearly 4.9 million second doses. This means more than 6.1 million LA County residents have received one dose, and more than 5.3 million are fully vaccinated. Among County residents 12 and older, almost 70% have received at least one dose of vaccine, and 61% are fully vaccinated.

Now through Thursday, July 29 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 an array of concerts presented by AEG.?

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 Tuesday

California Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday 3,815,702 cases and 63,811 deaths to date. There are 3,200 confirmed hospitalizations and 720 ICU hospitalizations in the state.

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

There were 7,731 newly reported confirmed cases Monday.

Cases are increasing statewide, largely among unvaccinated populations.

– For the week of July 7-14, the average case rate among unvaccinated Californians is 13 per 100,000 per day and the average case rate among vaccinated Californians is significantly lower at 2 per 100,000 per day.

– Between January 1 and July 14, 99% of the state’s cumulative cases have occurred among unvaccinated individuals.

The 7-day positivity rate is 5.4%.

There have been 73,135,751 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 128,412 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of July 27, providers have reported administering a total of 43,568,444 vaccine doses statewide. The CDC reports that 49,473,615 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 26, local health departments have reported 115,789 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 481 deaths statewide.

Stop the Spread: Get Vaccinated for COVID-19

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection continues as a number of Californians remain unvaccinated. With the emergence of the more transmissible Delta variant, there is a renewed urgency to get all eligible Californians vaccinated as quickly as possible and complete their two-dose vaccination process if they are receiving Pfizer or Moderna.

CDPH is reminding unvaccinated Californians that the COVID-19 vaccine is safe, free and provides excellent protection from severe COVID-19 illness, including the Delta variant, hospitalization, and death.

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 11 to July 17, the average time patients waited for test results was under one day. During this same time period, 85% 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 26, there have been 583 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.