Los Angeles County Announces 27 New Deaths Related to 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)

1,843 New Cases of Confirmed COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 27 new deaths and 1,843 new cases of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Although this is the highest number of new cases reported in a day, some of these cases are from a backlog of test results. Twenty people who died were over the age of 65 years old; six people who died were between the ages of 41 and 65 years old, and one person who died was between the ages of 18 and 40 years old.  Seventeen people had underlying health conditions including 11 people over the age of 65 years old and six people between the ages of 41 to 65 years old.

To date, Public Health has identified 47,822 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County, and a total of 2,143 deaths. Ninety-three percent of people who died had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 1,974 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health) 39% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 29% among White residents, 17% among Asian residents, 12% among African American residents, 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races. Upon further investigation, thirty-nine cases reported earlier were not LA County residents. As of today, 6,195 people who tested positive for COVID-19 (13% of positive cases) have been hospitalized at some point during their illness. There are 1,443 people who are currently hospitalized, 28% of these people are in the ICU and 19% are on ventilators. Testing capacity continues to increase in LA County, with testing results available for over 514,000 individuals and 8% of people testing positive.

Of the 2,143 total deaths in LA County, 47% were in skilled nursing facilities. Testing capacity continues to increase across skilled nursing facilities in LA County with support from Public Health, the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and the City of Los Angeles.  As of this Friday, 157 skilled nursing facilities have tested all residents and staff, and an additional 68 are being scheduled. Public Health continues to schedule appointments with other skilled nursing facilities to complete testing, conduct on-site inspections and survey bed capacity, staffing capacity and availability of personal protective equipment.

“To all of you who have lost someone you love to COVID-19, you are in our thoughts and prayers.  We wish you healing and peace during this very sad time,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “As improved infection control practices and testing have increased over the last month, deaths among residents in nursing homes have dropped from 174 deaths for the week ending May 2, to 60 deaths for the week ending May 23. We continue to work with our partners to ensure that all facilities protect employees and residents.”

The current Health Officer Order that replaces the previous Health Officer Order allows for the reopening of beach bike paths and parking lots, indoor mall curbside service, and select vehicle parades. Retailers remain closed to public entry along with beach piers, and public and private gatherings of any number of people outside of a single household unit are still not permitted. Everyone must continue to follow distancing and infection control protocols, stay at least six feet apart 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.  The Health Officer Order continues to require specific higher-risk businesses to remain closed and prohibit dining in at restaurants. Restaurants are still allowed to serve food to customer via delivery, take-out or drive-thru.

The best protection against COVID-19 continues to be to wash your hands frequently, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, self-isolate if you are sick, and to practice physical distancing  and wear a clean face covering when in contact with others from outside your household. People who have underlying health conditions remain 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 call their providers immediately if they have even mild symptoms.

LA County is in stage two of the five-stage Roadmap to Recovery and until the final stage five is reached, Health Officer Orders and directives will continue to ensure that we slow spread of COVID-19 to prevent an overwhelming surge of COVID-19 cases at healthcare facilities. The Health Officer Order, 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.

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