Text-based Survey to Research COVID-19 Symptoms Across L.A. County

41 New Deaths and 2,628 New Cases of Confirmed COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

The Los County Department of Public Health (Public Health) announces Angelenos in Action, a text-based survey to monitor COVID-19 symptoms across LA County aimed at capturing potential spikes and trends in real-time to assist Public Health workers appropriately allocate resources to affected communities.

Adults (18 years and older) living in Los Angeles County, who have access to a cell phone, and can send and receive text messages, can volunteer for the survey.

They can enroll by visiting the Public Health website or by text @PROTECT to 35134.  Currently the survey is available in English and Spanish.

The survey is confidential, consists of five questions, should take less than a minute to complete, and helps Public Health understand the spread of COVID-19 and how to better support community residents.

Today, Public Health has confirmed 41 new deaths and 2,628 new cases of COVID-19.  To date, Public Health has identified 185,872 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County, and a total of 4,552 deaths.

Of the 41 new deaths reported today, 21 people that passed away (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena) were over the age of 80 years old, 10 people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79 years old, four people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64 years old, and four people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49 years old. Thirty-six people had underlying health conditions including 20 people over the age of 80 years old, 10 people between the ages of 65 and 79 years old, four people between the ages of 50 and 64 years old, and two people between the ages of 30 and 49 years old. Two deaths were reported by the City of Long Beach. Upon further investigation, 139 cases and five deaths reported earlier were not LA County residents.

Ninety-two percent of people who died from COVID-19 had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 4,260 people (99 percent of the cases reported by Public Health); 48% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 25% among White residents, 15% among Asian residents, 11% among African American/Black residents, less than 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races.

There are 2,022 confirmed cases currently hospitalized and 27% of these people are confirmed cases in the ICU. There are a total of 2,597 confirmed and suspect cases that are currently hospitalized and 17% of these people are on ventilators.

Testing results are available for over 1,733,000 individuals with 10% of all people testing positive.

“To the families who are grieving a loved one lost to COVID-19, I offer my sincere condolences,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “We are anxious to make sure that there are innovative strategies for partnering with residents to slow the spread.  Texting is such an easy way of communicating with people, especially our younger residents, so we’re pleased to have Angelenos in Action, an innovative disease surveillance program in place. We need everyone to help us protect our community and save lives. The main way to do that is to adhere to public health directives – avoid gathering with people that you don’t live with, wear a face covering, maintain physical distance, and wash hands often.”

When people gather with people outside of their household it increases the risk of COVID-19 spread. All events and gatherings, unless specifically allowed by Health Officer Orders remain prohibited. The more an individual interacts with others at a gathering and the longer that interaction lasts, the higher the potential risk of becoming infected with COVID-19 and for COVID-19 spreading. The higher the level of community transmission in the area that the gathering is being held, the higher the risk of COVID-19 spreading during a gathering.

The State Public Health Officer created an exception to the prohibition against gatherings for faith-based services and cultural ceremonies as well as protests.  Churches and protests can only operate outdoors, which is safer than indoors, with protocols in place including physical distancing between non-household members and wearing face coverings. It is important that worship services happen outside.

Currently, Public Health is responding to over 1,000 active outbreaks. Inspectors are working seven days a week conducting unannounced site visits, and also responding to a high volume of complaints. In the last several months, the department has received and responded to between 2,000 and 3,000 complaints a week that come via phone, web, and email.  The paramount concern is for the safety of all employees and their families, and the department continues to actively monitor facilities and other work sites to fully implement the infection control and distancing safety requirements.

Public Health has investigated the reports of two Mission Foods Corp employee deaths due to COVID-19. Public Health confirms that one death occurred in a LA County resident that tested positive for COVID-19 and the other death resided outside of Public Health’s jurisdiction and is still under investigation.

Residents are encouraged to report suspected outbreaks and notify the department if their employer isn’t protecting them by following the critical infection control protocols in place. Residents can call  888-700-9995. These tips can be submitted anonymously.

The 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.

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