The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday 102 additional deaths and 3,348 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, with 66 new cases in the Santa Clarita Valley. This new data brings Los Angeles County death totals to 30,081, county case totals to 2,766,161 and Santa Clarita Valley case totals to 71,163 since March of 2020.

Today, as Los Angeles County surpassed the grim milestone of losing more than 30,000 residents to COVID-19, Public Health is reporting an additional 102 additional daily deaths.  While case and hospitalization numbers have declined significantly, sadly, many residents continue to lose their lives to this dangerous virus. Our hope is that as we drive case and hospitalization numbers lower, deaths will decline.

With hospitalizations under 2,500 for seven consecutive days, Public Health issued a modified LA County Health Officer Order today recommending, but no longer requiring, masking at outdoor mega events and outdoor spaces at K-12 schools and childcare centers. For the week ending February 13, the seven-day average of daily COVID hospital admissions decreased by 87 admissions from the prior week to 242 admissions this week, translating into a 26% decline in County hospital admissions. While the number of daily hospital admissions has continued to decrease, the number of hospitalized COVID patients in the ICU (21%) and those requiring ventilation (13%) has remained fairly stable compared to the previous week.  Total hospital census for LA County hospitals also decreased to 13,971 as of February 14, crossing below the 14,000 mark for the first time since January 3.

While masking will no longer be required at outdoor Mega Events or in outdoor spaces at childcare facilities and K-12 schools, the masking requirement at indoor establishments will continue until:

-LA County has seven consecutive days at or below Moderate Transmission (10-49.99 new cases/100,000 persons in the past seven days), AND

-There are no emerging reports of significantly circulating new variants of concern that threaten vaccine effectiveness.

Per state regulations, indoor masking at K-12 schools, childcare facilities, youth settings, healthcare settings, correctional facilities, homeless and emergency shelters, and cooling centers is still currently required. The state will also provide an updated assessment on February 28 on appropriate safety considerations for schools.

Additionally, per federal regulations, masking when riding public transit and in transportation hubs is still required.

Employers must also continue to provide high quality and well-fitting masks to workers who are in close contact with others until transmission is lower. Vaccination verification will also continue at mega events and indoor sections of bars, lounges, nightclubs, wineries, breweries, and distilleries.

“I send my heartfelt condolences to everyone mourning the loss of a loved one due to COVID-19.” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “While entering post-surge is welcoming news, we are all aware that post-surge does not mean the pandemic is over, or that transmission is low, or that there will not be additional unpredictable waves of surges in the future that will require integrated public health measures. Post surge acknowledges the consistent and welcomed declines from the surge peak and realigns our current public health response to meet current mitigation needs.  We anticipate, that with continued steep declines in case numbers indicating much lower transmission, we will be able to safely lift indoor mask mandates in mid-March.  Please continue to take sensible precautions that reduce exposures so that we don’t lose ground.”

Today, Public Health confirmed 102 additional deaths and 3,348 new cases of COVID-19. Of the 102 new deaths reported today, one person was between the ages of 18-29, six people were between the ages of 30-49, 18 were between the ages of 50-64, 29 were between the ages of 65-79, and 35 were aged 80 years or older. Of the 102 newly reported deaths, 58 had underlying health conditions. Information on the 13 deaths reported by the City of Long Beach is available at www.LongBeach.gov. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 30,081.

Public Health has reported a total of 2,769,372 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County. Today’s positivity rate is 3%.

There are 1,835 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 11,305,745 individuals, with 22% of people testing positive.

To keep workplaces and schools open, residents and workers are asked to:

– Get tested to help reduce the spread, especially if you traveled for the holidays, have had a possible exposure, or have symptoms, or are gathering with people not in your household

– Adhere to masking requirements when indoors or at crowded outdoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status

– Residents are legally required to be isolated if they have a positive COVID test result and vaccinated close contacts with symptoms and unvaccinated close contacts need to be quarantined.

For information on where you can get tested visit www.covid19.lacounty.gov/testing/.

For updated isolation and quarantine guidance visit www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and are recommended for everyone 5 years old and older to help protect against COVID-19. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status. Appointments are not needed at all Public Health vaccination sites and many community sites where first, second, and third doses are available.

To find a vaccination site near you, or to make an appointment, please visit:

www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) or

www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital

Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital currently has one tests pending, 23 patients in the hospital, and a total of 2,145 patients who have been treated and discharged since the pandemic began and no additional deceased, 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.

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

Santa Clarita Valley Wednesday Update
As of 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, the L.A. County Public Health dashboard reported no additional deaths from COVID-19 in the SCV, leaving the total number of COVID-19 deaths to date in the SCV to 422.

The following is the community breakdown per L.A. County’s dashboard:

Santa Clarita: 346

Castaic: 27

Acton: 15

Unincorporated Canyon Country: 9 (revised from 10)

Stevenson Ranch: 10

Agua Dulce: 5

Val Verde: 3

Valencia: 2

Unincorporated Bouquet Canyon: 2

Elizabeth Lake: 1

Newhall: 1

unincorporated Saugus/Canyon Country: 1

Lake Hughes: 0 (**revised from 1)

SCV Cases

Of the 71,163 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

Santa Clarita: 52,844

Castaic: 7,004

Stevenson Ranch: 3,922

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 2,530

Acton: 1,485

Val Verde: 818

Agua Dulce: 769

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 659

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 303

Elizabeth Lake: 200

Bouquet Canyon: 147

Lake Hughes: 144

Saugus/Canyon Country: 89

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 87

Sand Canyon: 47

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 34

Placerita Canyon: 15

*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.

California Wednesday

California School Mask Guidance

California’s approach to keeping schools safe has resulted in only 1% of the nation’s school closures despite educating the most K-12 public school students (12%) in the country. For the time being and because of the unique nature of school settings, California will continue to require universal masking in schools

On February 28, the State will reassess data and conditions (e.g., case rate, test positivity, hospitalizations, pediatric hospitalizations and vaccine rates) for a potential future change to the statewide school masking requirement.

Statewide COVID-19 Data

Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are largely occurring among unvaccinated populations. See the data for unvaccinated and vaccinated cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Vaccinations

– 70,845,447 total vaccines administered.

– 82.7% of the eligible population (5+) has been vaccinated with at least one dose.

– 64,273 people a day are receiving COVID-19 vaccination (average daily dose count over 7 days).

Cases

– California has 8,271,470  confirmed cases to date.

– Wednesday’s average case count is 20,621 (average daily case count over 7 days).

– Unvaccinated people are 5.6 times more likely to get COVID-19 than boosted individuals (Jan. 17, 2022 – Jan.23, 2022).

Testing

– The testing positivity rate is 5.6% (average rate over 7 days).

Hospitalizations

– here are 7,645 hospitalizations statewide.

– There are 1,502 ICU patients statewide.

– Unvaccinated people are 11.7 times more likely to be hospitalized than boosted individuals (Jan. 24, 2022 – Jan. 30, 2022).

Deaths

– There have been 82,382 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

– COVID-19 claims the lives of 165 Californians each day (average daily death count over 7 days).

– Unvaccinated people are 17.0 times more likely to die than boosted individuals (Jan. 17, 2022 – Jan. 23, 2022).

Health Care Workers

Note: There has been no update of positive cases among health care workers since Jan. 6. As of Jan. 6, local health departments have reported 136,816 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 540 deaths statewide.

Testing Turnaround Time

The testing turnaround time dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of Jan. 30 to Feb. 5, the average time patients waited for test results was 0.9 days. 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 Feb. 14, there have been 817 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.