Los Angeles County disclosed updates surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic on Monday, August 17. L.A. is seeing stabilization throughout the six state ordered benchmarks. Public officials gave insight on the steps moving forward with bending the curve and stopping the spread of coronavirus. There has been magnified focus on assisting exasperated areas of the County.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has provided 100-million dollars in CARES Act funds to respond to the COVID-19 disparities found in many communities. This is operated by the Los Angeles County Development Authority, (LACDA) the initiative launched on Monday. The mission is to assist over 9,000 homes, it’s intended to meet the needs of households facing severe disparity. It is available to all Los Angeles residents.
Director of Los Angeles Public Health Dr. Barbara Ferrer stated, ” We do continue to be cautiously optimistic that all of the sacrifices and the hard work that we’ve seen across the county is working.” She continued to explain that Los Angeles is back on track with slowing down the spread of coronavirus.
Recent statistics shown on Monday reflect 19 additional deaths, seven of these individuals were over the age of 80, six of them had underlining health conditions. five people who died were between the ages of 65-79, three victims had preexisting health concerns. four individuals were between the ages of 50-64, and two of them had underlining health problems. Two people who passed were between the ages of 30-49, one of them had previous medical issues. One person passed away and were between the ages of 18-29, they also had underlining health issues. This brings the total COVID-19 related deaths in L.A. County to 5,273.
The relationship between COVID-19 infection and ethnicity were provided. The racial background collected from 4,688 fatal cases showed 10% were African American, 15% were Asian, slightly less than 1% were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 49% were LatinX, 24% were White, and 1% identified as a different race or ethnicity. 92% of those who died due to COVID-19 had preexisting health concerns.
There were 1,185 new COVID-19 reports. In summary, there is a total amount of 223,131 coronavirus cases in the Los Angeles region. 9,637 incidents were reported in the city of Long Beach and 2,230 cases in the city of Pasadena. Amid the unsheltered, there were 1,348 positive cases.
Ferrer shows models representing the decrease in each key indicator, there has been a decline in hospitalization, positive cases, community transmission, and death rates. Ferrer stated, “ I hope this data reminds all of us about the power our actions have in preventing serious illness and saving lives.”
The public health director explained that the decrease in numbers and signs of stabilization are due to the hard work the community did in unity. Businesses and residents that created a space of compliance and concern for safety is reflecting on a county scale. Although the public health department remains cautious, they also remain hopeful of the community and the continual unity in stopping the spread of coronavirus. The county will continue to monitor key benchmarks in hopes of seeing the numbers continue to decrease.
