Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital officials confirmed Monday an additional four positive coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of cases in the Santa Clarita Valley to at least 132.
In its daily video update on Monday, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced the number of cases countywide had risen to more than 6,000 and 15 additional deaths were reported, bringing the countywide COVID-19 death toll to 147.
Over the weekend, the hospital received a total of seven additional positive test results for COVID-19, bringing the total to 54 by Monday, according to spokesman Patrick Moody.
Henry Mayo has now administered 351 tests, and of those, 287 have returned negative, while 17 are still pending results. Some patients are tested more than once, so there is a disparity in those figures, according to Moody.
While 12 patients remained hospitalized as of Monday, Moody said they currently do not have information on the number of recovered patients, as many are discharged from the hospital while still showing symptoms.
Lab results continue to return with a lag time of three to six days, but that time frame varies, Moody said Saturday.
In Los Angeles County, Public Health has reported a total of 6,360 cases and 147 deaths as of Monday afternoon. Over the last 48 hours, there have been an additional 1,083 new cases countywide.
“Our mortality rate for COVID-19 has crept up to 2.3%,” Director of Public Health Dr. Barbara Ferrer said, adding, “78% of all our positive cases still occur among people who are between the ages of 18 and 65. And, it’s important to note that while many, many different people are infectious and range from young people all the way to very old people, disproportionately people who are older and people who have underlying health conditions are at higher risk of serious illness and death.”
Approximately 900 people countywide are currently hospitalized for COVID-19, which is much greater than was reported Friday. Of those, 6% of hospitalized patients are in the intensive care unit, while 45% of those in the ICU are 65 years of age or older and 54% have underlying health conditions, per Public Health officials.
Over the weekend, many reports released identified that the U.S. is about to see the worst of the virus in the coming week, Ferrer said.
“This may be true in our county, as well, where we will see many more cases over the next few weeks,” she said. “But it remains important that we continue to do what we know will work. And I asked you to do all that you’ve been doing and can continue to do to play your part. If you have enough supplies in your home, this will be the week to skip shopping altogether. If you can arrange for medications and groceries to be delivered, this would be the week to put that in place.”
In addition, Ferrer continues to ask the public to wear face masks at all times when either in a public or private setting with other people who are not members of your household.
“They may be helpful in preventing you from infecting others, but they’re not going to keep you from becoming infected,” she added. “Your best protections remain staying home as much as possible, frequently washing your hands, and importantly staying at least six feet apart from all other people when you’re out.”
The number of cases for the Santa Clarita Valley, broken down into region, were as follows, according to Public Health’s numbers as of noon Monday:
- City of Santa Clarita: 106
- Unincorporated – Acton: “–”
- Unincorporated – Agua Dulce: “–”
- Unincorporated – Canyon Country: 8
- Unincorporated – Castaic: 6
- Unincorporated – Lake Hughes: 0
- Unincorporated – Newhall: 0
- Unincorporated – Placerita Canyon: 0
- Unincorporated – Sand Canyon: 0
- Unincorporated – Saugus: “–”
- Unincorporated – Saugus/Canyon Country: 0
- Unincorporated – Stevenson Ranch: 8
- Unincorporated – Val Verde: 0
- Unincorporated – Valencia: “–”
Anywhere there is a “ – ” means they could have between one and four cases, according to county DPH officials.
This is done to protect patient privacy, and once these locations have five or more cases then they will be included, according to Public Health spokesman Bernard Tolliver. Locations that have zero will say “0.”
Previously, The Signal had not been including the “–” in the day’s final count, but since the “–” represents a value ranging from one to four, the count now reflects the more accurate number.
To view all coronavirus-related stories, visit signalscv.com/category/news/coronavirus.
