The Los Angeles Post

As Schools Return from Spring Break and Holidays, Sensible Measures Strongly Recommended to Keep Schools Safe

by ·

1,146 New Positive Cases and 15 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

As students return to campus after Spring Break and holidays, Public Health recommends a series of sensible safety steps that will keep staff, students, and families safe at schools. Given the rapid rise of the more infectious BA.2 subvariant across the U.S. and the world, residents need to remain vigilant and take actions to reduce transmission.

Given recent increases in cases of COVID, anyone with illness symptoms needs to stay home and get tested to be sure they aren’t infected. Parents are encouraged to use the test kits they received from their child’s school to test children before they return to class.

Masking and being fully vaccinated and boosted, if eligible, are also both strongly recommended and can prevent outbreaks, which typically increase after holidays with many gatherings.

With many school districts closed because of Spring Break, including Los Angeles Unified School District, there were far fewer tests administered, resulting in a higher positivity rate. For the week ending April 15, there were 311 positive tests among nearly 67,000 tests administered, resulting in a test positivity rate of 0.5%. By comparison, for the prior week ending April 8, nearly 450,000 tests were administered with 844 positive tests and a test positivity of 0.2%.

The number of new school-associated outbreaks was also lower due to many schools being closed. For the week ending April 16, there were six new school-associated outbreaks (three in elementary schools, one in a middle school, one in a high school, and one in youth sports). The week prior, there were 11 new school-associated outbreaks.

To promote safety at schools, Public Health is working with partners to ensure easy access to COVID-19 vaccines, and this week, there are 171 school-based clinics offering pediatric doses for those ages 5-11, as well as vaccines and boosters for eligible individuals 12 years of age and older. As a reminder, vaccines continue to provide the best protection against illness and hospitalizations and are the safest way to keep children in school and participating in other activities.

“I send my deepest sympathies and wishes of peace and comfort to the many families who have lost a loved one from COVID-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “As schools re-open after the Spring Break and Spring holidays, additional precautions are warranted given the increased circulation of the more infectious BA.2 subvariant in LA County. Identifying those who are infected early so that they can isolate from others requires continued emphasis on testing. This is especially important at schools and we urge parents to take advantage of school sponsored testing opportunities, including using the antigen test kits sent home before the Spring break and allowing their children to participate in routine school-based testing. And while masking indoors is not required at most schools, safety at schools is significantly improved if students and staff are wearing high quality, well-fitting masks when indoors. This is particularly important at schools where testing after the spring break indicates significant numbers of infected students and staff. Families are also asked to follow isolation and quarantine guidance and are reminded that asymptomatic students remaining in school after an exposure to an infected person must wear a mask indoors for 10 days after their last exposure and must get tested as soon as possible after their exposure to make sure they aren’t infected.”

Today, Public Health reported 15 additional deaths and 1,146 new positive cases of COVID-19. Of the 15 new deaths reported today, one person was between the ages of 50-64, five people were between the ages of 65-79, and eight people were aged 80 years or older. Of the 15 newly reported deaths, all had underlying health conditions. Additional information on the one death reported by the City of Long Beach is available at www.LongBeach.gov. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 31,899.

Public Health has reported a total of 2,855,687 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County. Today’s positivity rate is 2.5%. There are 230 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 11,797,600 individuals, with 22% of people testing positive.

A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov including:

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

For more information:

Cases through 12:00pm 4/19/2022

Total Cases

Laboratory Confirmed Cases

2,855,687

— Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)*

2,701,434

— Long Beach

125,805

— Pasadena

28,448

Deaths

31,899

— Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)

30,223

— Long Beach

1,264

— Pasadena

412

Age Group (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)

– 0 to 4

83019

– 5 to 11

239974

– 12 to 17

234318

– 18 to 29

602111

– 30 to 49

861917

– 50 to 64

447345

– 65 to 79

174029

– over 80

56607

– Under Investigation

2114

Gender (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)

– Female

1374029

– Male

1251569

– Other

1122

– Under Investigation

74714

Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)

– American Indian/Alaska Native

4968

– Asian

166779

– Black

135663

– Hispanic/Latino

1231589

– Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander

13675

– White

349247

– Other

299504

– Under Investigation

500009

Hospitalization (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)

– Hospitalized (Ever)

137,071

Deaths Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)

– American Indian/Alaska Native

73

– Asian

3772

– Black

2800

– Hispanic/Latino

15533

– Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander

111

– White

7527

– Other

312

– Under Investigation

95