Public Health confirms 11 new deaths and 909 new cases of COVID-19, with 37,224 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley, and Henry Mayo reporting one additional death.

Of the 11 new deaths reported today, one person who passed away was over the age of 80, four people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, four people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, and one person who died was between the ages of 30 and 49. One death was reported by the City of Long Beach. To date, Public Health has identified 1,487,502 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 26,578 deaths.

There are 650 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 28% of these people are in the ICU. Testing results are available for nearly 9,010,000 individuals with 15% of people testing positive. Today’s test positivity rate is 1.2%.

“To the families and friends experiencing the sadness and grief of losing a loved one to COVID-19, our thoughts and prayers are with you every day,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health.

L.A. County Helps Nursing Facilities To Get Booster Shots

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health continues to work with skilled nursing facilities to ensure their eligible residents and staff receive COVID boosters.

The majority of skilled nursing facilities have established relationships with long term care pharmacies who will be supporting the provisions of booster doses to eligible residents. Beginning this week, skilled nursing facilities will be surveyed weekly to collect information on implementation of strategies to ensure eligible residents can receive booster doses.  Public Health is working to address any barriers in requesting, receiving and administering boosters, and deploying mobile vaccine teams to assist any skilled nursing facility requiring help.

 For the week ending October 17, 56 people tested positive for COVID-19 at skilled nursing facilities: 44 new cases were among skilled nursing facility residents, and 12 new cases were among skilled nursing facility staff. Fifty-five percent of new cases the week ending October 17 at skilled nursing facilities are among staff and residents that are fully vaccinated.

Skilled nursing facilities report that 95% of staff and 88% of residents are fully vaccinated. Skilled nursing facilities are subject to strict infection control precautions and are also required to verify the vaccine status of all workers and conduct routine testing of staff and residents. All staff at skilled nursing facilities are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19; those with an approved medical or religious exemption need to be tested once or twice weekly.

Santa Clarita Valley Wednesday Update

As of 6 p.m. Monday, the L.A. County Public Health COVID-19 dashboard confirmed a total of 348 COVID-19 related deaths in the SCV since the pandemic began.

The following is the community breakdown of the 348 SCV residents who have died, according to the L.A. County dashboard:

292 in Santa Clarita

21 in Castaic

10 in Acton

8 in Stevenson Ranch

6 in unincorporated Canyon Country

3 in Agua Dulce

3 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 37,224 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported to Public Health for the SCV to date, the community breakdown is as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 27,330

Castaic: 4,499 (incl. Pitchess Detention Center & North County Correctional Facility*)

Stevenson Ranch: 1,744

Canyon Country (unincorporated portion): 1,169

Acton: 775

Val Verde: 427

Agua Dulce: 411

Valencia (unincorporated portion west of I-5): 289

Saugus (unincorporated portion): 166

Elizabeth Lake: 116

Newhall (Unincorporated portion): 69 (**revised from 70)

Bouquet Canyon: 70

Lake Hughes: 59

Saugus/Canyon Country: 51

Sand Canyon: 24

San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon: 20

Placerita Canyon: 5

*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

Valencia High School parents were alerted by school administrators Tuesday night that 33 positive COVID-19 cases had been diagnosed on the Vikings campus within the last week.

The cases, according to Dave Caldwell, a spokesman for the William S. Hart Union High School District, are among both students and staff, but are primarily within the school’s cheerleading team. Click here to get the full story.

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

As of Wednesday, Oct. 27, Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital reports one additional death, bringing the total to date to 178.

With the additional death, the hospital reported zero tests pending, 16 patients in the hospital, and a total of 1,587 patients who have been treated and discharged since the pandemic began, 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.

California Wednesday Snapshot

California Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday 4,635,540 cases and 71,295 deaths to date.

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

There were 4,378 newly reported confirmed Tuesday.

As of Oct. 25, local health departments have reported 127,755 confirmed positive cases in health care workers and 524 deaths statewide.

Cases are occurring largely among unvaccinated populations:

– For the week of October 12 – October 18, the average case rate among unvaccinated Californians age 16 or older is 35.8 per 100,000 per day and the average case rate among vaccinated Californians age 16 or older is significantly lower at 5.2 per 100,000 per day.

– The great majority of new cases are among unvaccinated individuals. The rate among the unvaccinated is 6.9 times the rate among the vaccinated.

(See the data for vaccinated and unvaccinated cases)

The 7-day positivity rate is 2.2%.

There have been 101,269,181 tests conducted in California. This represents an increase of 151,846 during the prior 24-hour reporting period.

As of Oct.27, according to the CDC, 86.7% of eligible Californians have received at least one dose. Providers have reported to CDPH that a total of 52,327,114 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.

On Wednesday, California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly, and Director of the California Department of Public Health and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás J. Aragón, issued a joint statement on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee recommendation to authorize the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5-11. The statement is as follows:

“Today’s recommendation to authorize the COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11 brings us one step closer to keeping more of our loved ones safe, achieving full family protection, and ending the wrath of this deadly virus. Research from rigorous clinical(s) trials indicate the pediatric formulation of the vaccine is safe and highly effective in this age group.

Real-world evidence continues to show that the vaccine is preventing severe illness, hospitalization and death. The vaccine has been given safely to millions of adolescents and young adults since it was authorized for ages 16 and up last December, and for ages 12 and up in May.

These recommendations launch the federal review process, and CDPH will wait to see what the FDA formally authorizes, as well as what the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and what our partners in the Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup recommend before administering vaccines to children ages 5-11. California will be ready to administer vaccines immediately once the review process is complete.”

See more California information later in this report.

L.A. County Vaccine Information

“After reviewing safety and efficacy data, the FDA’s vaccine advisory panel met today and recommended Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children 5 to 11, bringing us closer to expanding vaccine access to 900,000 L.A. County children; fully vaccinated children will be better protected at schools, youth activities, holiday gatherings and celebrations, and homes. Once the CDC issues final approval and guidance, the County is prepared to begin offering doses to younger children as early as late next week through our vast network of countywide providers,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health.

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 where first, second, and third doses are available.

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.

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 Oct. 25, there have been 677 cases of 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.

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 Oct. 10 to Oct. 16, the average time patients waited for test results was 0.9 days. During this same time period, 81% of patients received test results in one day and 96% 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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