Tuesday, June 16, 2020

County COVID-19 Case Count Passes 75,000 Mark

Grim death toll nears 3,000

CITY NEWS SERVICE

County health officials reported 33 new Coronavirus deaths and 1,337 new cases on Tuesday.

To date the county has identified 75,084 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County, and a total of 2,959 deaths.

“Each day, we are thinking of the many families who are grieving for loved ones lost to COVID-19. Our hearts go out to you, and we wish you healing and peace,” said Barbara Ferrer, director of Public Health. “Thank you for continuing to look out for each other by following protocols for reopening, keeping physical distancing and always wearing cloth face coverings when around other people. These are significant actions – and with an increase in the number of people infected with COVID-19, these actions are absolutely necessary to make sure we continue to slow the spread.”

Health officials said everyone must continue to follow distancing and infection control directives and wear a clean cloth face covering that securely covers both your nose and mouth when in contact with other people not in your household. It’s important if someone thinks they could be positive and are awaiting testing results, to stay at home and act as if they are positive for COVID-19. This means self-isolating for 10 days and 72 hours after symptoms and fever subside, or until they receive a negative result. If a person tests positive for COVID-19, they should plan on receiving a call from a contact tracer to discuss how to protect themselves and others, to find out where they may have been, and who they were in close contact with while infectious.

Public Health issued a modified Health Officer Order designed to help move the county of Los Angeles into stage 3 of California’s Pandemic Resilience Roadmap. The modified Health Officer Order allows for the following sectors to reopen once they implement the required protocols for infection control and distancing:

Gyms and fitness facilities
Pro-league arenas without live audiences
Day camps
Museums, galleries, zoos and aquariums
Campgrounds, RV parks and outdoor recreation
Music, film and television production
Hotels for leisure travel