The Los Angeles County Dept of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 44 new deaths and 1,011 new cases of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Thirty-four people who died were over the age of 65; seven people who died were between the ages of 41 and  65, and one person who died was between the ages of 18 and 40. Twenty-nine people had underlying health conditions including 25 people over 65 years old and four people between the ages of 41 to 65 years old. Two deaths were reported by the City of Long Beach.

To date, Public Health has identified 31,197 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County, and a total of 1,512 deaths. Ninety-two percent of people who died had underlying health conditions. Upon further investigation, 110 cases reported earlier were not LA County residents. As of today, 5,363 people who tested positive for COVID-19 (17% of positive cases) have been hospitalized at some point during their illness. Testing capacity continues to increase in LA County, with testing results available for nearly 227,000 individuals and 12% of people testing positive.

“Many people in our community are experiencing profound loss because their loved ones have passed away from COVID-19. We keep you in our thoughts and prayers every day,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, director of Public Health. “If you are out and about this weekend, please take every precaution since anyone of us, even if we are not sick, could be infected with COVID-19 and capable of infecting others. When outside your home, always stay 6 feet away from everyone and wear a cloth face covering securely over your nose and mouth if there are others near you. These actions are critically important as we begin the journey of recovery so that we don’t find ourselves with large increases in hospitalizations and deaths that would require us to reinstitute restrictions.”

Public Health issued a five-stage roadmap to recovery that describes a phased approach to slowly relaxing select directives of the Safer at Home Order and a reopening process for certain business sectors.  Currently, LA County is in phase two which allows florists and some retailers to offer curbside pickup only. Car dealership showrooms can reopen with appropriate physical distancing and infection control measures. Trails and golf courses can also open, but pro shops remain closed. Everyone must continue to adhere to physical distancing measures and use cloth face coverings. Later next week, additional restrictions may be lifted to include other retailers, manufacturers, and recreational facilities.

The next three stages of the roadmap to recovery include the potential opening in phases to include higher-risk institutions and businesses such as movie theaters, schools, colleges and universities, followed later by conventions and spectator events, and finally to normal operations for all sectors. Each sector will have safe reopening protocols that must be adhered to. Until the final stage five is reached, Health Officer Orders and directives will continue to ensure the slow of spread of COVID-19 to prevent an overwhelming surge of COVID-19 cases at healthcare facilities. People who have underlying health conditions will still be at much greater risk for serious illness from COVID-19, so it will continue to be very important for the County’s vulnerable residents to stay at home as much as possible, to have groceries and medicine delivered, and to know to call their providers immediately if they have even mild symptoms.

An interactive dashboard is available that provides an overview on COVID-19 testing, cases and deaths along with maps and graphs showing testing, cases and death data by community poverty level, age, sex and race/ethnicity. To view Public Health’s COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard, visit: http://dashboard.publichealth.lacounty.gov/covid19_surveillance_dashboard