The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday 2,496 new cases of COVID-19 and 65 new deaths. The daily positivity rate (a composite of a 7-day rolling average) is 10.4%, a rate that Los Angeles County hasn’t seen since late-April.

In Santa Clarita, Public Health has confirmed 3,470 cases to date.

There are more than 2,000 people currently hospitalized, 26% of these people are confirmed cases in the ICU and 17% are confirmed cases on ventilators. This remains substantially higher than the 1,350 to 1,450 daily hospitalizations seen four weeks ago.

To date, Public Health has identified 123,004 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County, and a total of 3,642 deaths.

Testing results are available for over 1,229,000 individuals with 9% of all people testing positive.

Statewide, as of July 7, the California Department of Public Health has confirmed a total of 289,468 cases and 6,562 deaths from COVID-19. Currently, there are 6,100 confirmed hospitalizations and 1,753 ICU hospitalizations. Numbers may not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed.

California’s positivity rate – a key indicator of community spread – is trending upward in the 14-day average. Hospitalization rates are also trending upward in the 14-day average. Numbers may not represent true day-over-day change as reporting of test results can be delayed, and the 7-day average more accurately describes trends in number of cases. The 7-day average number of new cases is 8,116 per day. The 7-day average from the week prior was 6,062.

Note: Wednesday’s case number includes a backlog reported from laboratories in Los Angeles County.

There have been 4,996,175 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 99,805 tests over the prior 24-hour reporting period. As testing capacity continues to increase across the state, an increase in the number of positive cases has been expected – increasing the importance of positivity rates to find signs of community spread.

Health Care Worker Infection Rates
As of July 7, local health departments have reported 16,629 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 95 deaths statewide.

Santa Clarita Valley Tuesday Update
Of the 3,470 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 1,419

Castaic: 1,810 (includes Pitchess Detention Center and North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 77

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 51

Val Verde: 34

Acton: 31

Agua Dulce: 16

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 15

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 6

Elizabeth Lake: 5

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 3

Bouquet Canyon: 1

Lake Hughes: 1

Sand 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 Wednesday Update
As of Wednesday, July 8, of the 3,936 persons tested at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital to date, 415 tested positive, 3,671 were negative, 407 were pending, 11 patients were hospitalized in a dedicated unit receiving ICU-level care and a total of 132 COVID-19 patients have been discharged so far. The number of deceased remains at 14, hospital spokesman Patrick 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.

L.A. County
“Each day, as we share this information with you, we know there are people across our community who have suffered tremendous loss. For those of you mourning the passing of a loved one, we wish you healing and peace,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “We need our residents to repeat what we did just weeks ago if we are going to flatten the curve again. If we can’t get the infection numbers back under control by the end of July, we will see thousands more people that require hospitalizations and that could easily overwhelm our health care system.”

Of the 65 people that passed away, thirty-four people were over the age of 65 years old, 23 people who died were between the ages of 41 and 65 years old, and five people who died were between the ages of 18 and 40 years old. Fifty people had underlying health conditions including 33 people over the age of 65 years old, 13 people between the ages of 41 to 65 years old, and four people between the ages of 18 and 40 years old. Three deaths were reported by the city of Long Beach.

Ninety-three percent of people who died had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 3,389 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health); 45% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 27% among White residents, 16% 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, 31 cases and two deaths reported earlier were not L.A. County residents.

Business owners and residents must take immediate action in order to stop the spread of COVID-19. Stay home if you are elderly or have serious underlying health conditions. Everyone else should stay home as much as possible, and limit activities outside of your home to what is essential – work, getting groceries and medicine, and medical visits. Always wear a face covering and keep physical distance when you are outside your home. And wash your hands frequently. The actions of L.A. County residents to slow the spread cannot wait; we need to act now.

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 Wednesday
As of July 7, there have been 4,996,175 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 99,805 tests over the prior 24-hour reporting period. As testing capacity continues to increase across the state, the California Department of Public Health is working to expand access to COVID-19 testing. Testing should be used for medical evaluation of persons with symptoms of COVID-19 as well as for efforts by public health agencies and essential employers to prevent and control the spread of COVID-19. Individuals prioritized for testing include:

– Hospitalized patients

– Symptomatic and asymptomatic healthcare workers, first responders, and other social service employees

– Symptomatic individuals age 65 and older or symptomatic individuals of any age with chronic medical conditions that increase the risk of severe COVID-19 illness

– Individuals who are tested as part of disease control efforts in high-risk settings

– Asymptomatic residents and employees of congregate living facilities when needed to prevent disease transmission

– Symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals in essential occupations such as grocery store and food supply workers, utility workers and public employees

– Other individuals with symptoms consistent with COVID-19

As testing capacity continues to increase across the state, an increase in the number of positive cases has been expected – increasing the importance of positivity rates to find signs of community spread. These numbers include data from commercial, private and academic labs, including Quest, LabCorp, Kaiser, University of California and Stanford, and the the 25 state and county health labs currently testing.

Racial Demographics – A More Complete Picture
The California Department of Public Health is committed to health equity and collecting more detailed racial and ethnic data that will provide additional understanding for determining future action. Health outcomes are affected by forces including structural racism, poverty and the disproportionate prevalence of underlying conditions such as asthma and heart disease among Latinos and African American Californians. Only by looking at the full picture can we understand how to ensure the best outcomes for all Californians.

The differences in health outcomes related to COVID-19 are most stark in COVID-19 deaths. We have nearly complete data on race and ethnicity for COVID-19 deaths, and we are seeing the following trends. 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 about double their population representation across all adult age categories. For Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, overall numbers are low, but about three-fold difference 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.

New Data Portal
The state has launched a new, user-friendly data portal at COVID-19 Statewide Update that tracks COVID-19 cases statewide and by county, gender, age and ethnicity. The portal also outlines statewide hospitalizations and testing efforts. The data presented on the portal will be updated daily and will include additional information as it is available.

Your Actions Save Lives
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 such 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.

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.

To view the Los Angeles County Incident Report for Wednesday, see below:

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