Los Angeles County Public Health officials on Wednesday confirmed  38 new deaths and 2,277 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, with 33,843 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Of the 38 new deaths reported today, four people who passed away were over the age of 80, 13 people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, 12 people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, and seven people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49. Two deaths were reported by the City of Long Beach.

To date, Public Health identified 1,409,545 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 25,322 deaths.

There are 1,699 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 26% of these people are in the ICU.

Testing results are available for more than 8,122,000 individuals with 16% of people testing positive.

Cases Rising Among Children Ages 5-11

Case rates have been increasing most rapidly among children 5 to 11, who are not eligible for vaccination. Between Aug 14- 21, the case rate increased 50% among children 5 to 11, while the rate increased 13% in children 0 to 4 years old, and 24% in children 12 to 17 years old. Over the last week, as the case rate dropped 2-4% in the oldest and youngest age groups, the rate continued to rise 9% among 5 to 11 year olds. With increased numbers of children not yet vaccinated heading back to schools, layered protections are essential.

Between Aug15- 21, among the 12 to 17-year-old teens who are eligible for vaccine, unvaccinated teens had 8 times the risk of infection than those teens vaccinated, with 480 cases among every 100,000 unvaccinated children in this age group compared with 57 cases among 100,000 of those vaccinated.  Among groups ineligible for vaccination, the case rate was 132 per 100,000 children aged 0 to 4, and 293 per 100,000 children aged 5 to 11.

As of August 29, 60% of L.A. County residents 12 to 15 years old have received at least one dose of vaccine, and 48% were fully vaccinated.  Sixty-eight percent of teens 16 to 17 years old have received at least one dose of vaccine, and 57% were fully vaccinated. The most powerful strategy for keeping schools open is increasing vaccination numbers as fast as possible. If all eligible children and staff at schools were vaccinated, we would dramatically reduce transmission both in school settings and in after-school sports programs and extracurricular activities.

In K-12 school settings countywide, between Aug 15-29, 5,207 student cases and 729 staff cases were reported, with the vast majority occurring at LAUSD, which tests everyone weekly.

Most school sites with cases, 849 in all, reported only one case. However, 193 LAUSD and 105 other school sites reported two cases, and 621 LAUSD and 94 other school sites reported three or more cases.  Every case identified at a school needs to isolate at home away from others for 10 days from their symptom onset or test date. Their close contacts are identified and, if unvaccinated, they are required to quarantine.

Santa Clarita Valley Wednesday Update

As of 6 p.m. Sunday, the L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 dashboard confirmed a total of 315 COVID-19 related deaths in the SCV since the pandemic began.

The following is the community breakdown of the 315 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

269 in Santa Clarita

16 in Castaic (**revised from 15. But 18 initially)

8 in Acton

6 in Stevenson Ranch

6 in unincorporated Canyon Country

3 in Agua Dulce

2 in Val Verde

1 in unincorporated Bouquet Canyon

1 in Elizabeth Lake

1 in Newhall

1 in unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country

1 in Valencia

0 in Lake Hughes (**revised from 1)

Cases:

Of the 33,843 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 24,878

Castaic: 4,222 (incl. Pitchess Detention Center & North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 1,535

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 1,031

Acton: 648

Val Verde: 403

Agua Dulce: 361

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 249

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 157lake

Elizabeth Lake: 94

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 70

Bouquet Canyon: 60

Lake Hughes: 50

Saugus/Canyon Country: 46

Sand Canyon: 19

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 16

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.

William S. Hart Union High School District COVID-19 Dashboard

The William S. Hart Union High School District provides ongoing information to our community regarding COVID-19 cases while maintaining confidentiality for our students and staff. The COVID-19 case data below is updated regularly to indicate any currently confirmed COVID-19 positive case in staff members or students by school site. The data below is specific to individuals who have been physically present on a District campus within 14 days of receiving a positive COVID-19 test. The District, in conjunction with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, conducts contact tracing and directly notifies and provides resources for parents of students identified as close contacts (6 feet or less for 15 cumulative minutes or more).

Note: To see the communication process in the event of a positive COVID-19 case, visit https://www.hartdistrict.org/apps/pages/covid-19dashboard.

Student Dashboard:

Staff Dashboard:

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Wednesday Update

*At the time of reporting the numbers had not be released the following is from the day before*

As of Tuesday, Aug. 31, Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital had zero tests pending, 40 patients hospitalized and a total of 1,431 patients treated and discharged since the pandemic began hospital spokesman Patrick Moody confirmed.

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

California Wednesday Snapshot

California Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday 4,246,050  cases and 65,430deaths to date.

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

There were  23,387 newly reported confirmed cases Tuesday. *Note: Today’s report includes more than 10,000 cases that were delayed from Northern California Kaiser Permanente.

As of Aug. 31, local health departments have reported 121,502 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 494 deaths statewide.

Cases are increasing statewide, largely among unvaccinated populations:

– For the week of August 15 – August 21, the average case rate among unvaccinated Californians age 16 or older is 61.55 per 100,000 per day and the average case rate among vaccinated Californians age 16 or older is significantly lower at 10.77 per 100,000 per day.

– The vast majority of new cases are among the unvaccinated with 571% higher case rates among the unvaccinated than for those who are vaccinated.

The 7-day positivity rate is 4.8%.

There have been 82,684,535 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 532,560 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of Sept 1, according to the CDC, 80.6% of eligible Californians have received at least one dose. Providers have reported to CDPH that a total of 46,883,013 vaccine doses have been administered statewide.

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.

See more California information later in this report.

L.A. County Information

“Our deepest condolences go out to everyone who has lost a friend or loved one to COVID-19” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “Preventing COVID-19 transmission in schools requires layering a variety of protections that we can all work on together, and many of these strategies are important to do both at school and also when not at school. Getting eligible children and staff vaccinated is the most critical step in reducing risk; the more individuals that are vaccinated at schools and in our homes, the greater the protection for those not yet eligible for vaccines. Keeping sick children and those who need to quarantine at home is also a key component of prevention and requires that all of us have a plan for emergency childcare should one or more of our children need to remain home. Please participate in routine screening testing where it is available, and if you or your child ends up being a close contact of a confirmed case, participate in contact tracing, and follow Public Health isolation and quarantine orders. And, as always, it is important to mask up: masks do work to keep both students and teachers safe at school.”

Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.
Visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish) to learn how to make an appointment at vaccination sites. 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. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.

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.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

Each week, the California Department of Public Health updates the number of cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported in the state.

As of Aug. 30, there have been 592 cases of MIS-C have been reported statewide (**revised from 596).

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.

Although very rare, COVID-19 cases among children can sometimes result a few weeks later in very serious illness known as Multi-symptom Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).

Vaccine Eligibility

As of May 13, vaccination appointments for individuals aged 12+ can be made by visiting myturn.ca.gov. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those between the ages of 12 and 17 to receive a vaccination. For more information on the vaccine effort, visit Vaccinate All 58.

Tracking COVID-19 in California

* State Dashboard – Daily COVID-19 data

* County Map – Local data

* Data and Tools – Models and dashboards for researchers, scientists, and the public

* 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

California Testing & Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboardreports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results.

During the week of August 15 to August 21, the average time patients waited for test results was one day.

During this same time period, 69% of patients received test results in one day and 91% received them within two days.

Protect Yourself and Your Family: Your Actions Save Lives

Protect yourself, family, friends, and community by following these prevention measures:

* Getting vaccinated when it’s your turn. Californians age 16+ are eligible to make an appointment.

* Avoiding non-essential travel, and practicing self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival if you leave the state.

* Keeping interactions limited to people 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.

* 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.

* Getting tested if you believe you’ve been exposed. Free, confidential testing is available statewide.

* Adding your phone to the fight by signing up for COVID-19 exposure notifications from CA Notify.

* Answering the call if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or local health department tries to connect.

* Following guidance from public health officials.

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 (COVID-19):

* Los Angeles County Department of Public Health

* California Department of Public Health

* Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

* Spanish

* World Health Organization

* Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 Dashboard

L.A. County residents can also call 2-1-1.

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