LA County Reports 1,999 New Coronavirus Cases, 64 Additional Deaths
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Thursday reported 1,999 newly confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus and 64 additional deaths, bringing the countywide total to 216,139 reported positive cases and 5,171 deaths.
The number of new cases included about 300 backlog cases from the state with additional backlog reported expected, though other key indicators such as hospitalizations and deaths have not been affected by the reporting issue.
Health officials also reported that there were 891 ongoing COVID-19 outbreak investigations, including outbreaks at UPS, Trojan Battery and SoFi Stadium which have all reported between 60-90 confirmed positive cases among employees. The county requires businesses to report an outbreak when three employees test positive.
"Our actions as individuals, business owners and business operators to take the necessary steps that protect each other, workers and customers require adherence to infection control and distancing directives," Dr. Barbara Ferrer, county public health director, said. "Businesses need to immediately alert us when there is an outbreak."
Out of the total 1,441 outbreak investigations reported throughout the pandemic, the department has closed 550, though public health employees continue to respond to a high volume of health order violation complaints, the department said.
As of Thursday, there were 1,481 confirmed coronavirus patients hospitalized with 32% being treated in intensive care units.
With testing results available for more than 2 million people, the county's overall positivity rate was holding steady at 10%.
