Below are the most recent Coronavirus updates. If you have any questions, contact Student Health Services.
Blueprint for a Safer Economy
The new state plan for reopening released on 8/28/2020 had its first numbers update on 9/8/2020. There are a lot of details about how counties can move between tiers, how to count cases and how to adjust those numbers for testing activity. There is also more to be developed for addressing health outcomes and assessing the ability to address the most impacted communities within a county. Follow the link on the Blueprint homepage for “learn more about tier assignments” for these details and a link to current adjusted numbers for counties. The state is using 10,257,557 as L.A. County’s population.
COUNTY RISK LEVELAdjusted cases/day/ 100,000 persons# of adjusted new cases for L.A. County/day% positiveTier 1 Widespread Many non-essential indoor businesses closed>7>718>8%Tier 2 Substantial Some non-essential indoor businesses closed4-7396-7185-8%Tier 3 Moderate Some indoor businesses open with modifications1-3.9103-3952-4.9%Tier 4 Minimal Most indoor businesses open with modifications<1<103<2%
COVID-19 and College Towns
There are 203 counties in the U.S. where college students make up ≥10% of the population. Half of those counties have had their worst weeks of the pandemic since August 1st and half of those have new infections peaking now.
Makes me wonder about the ~100 counties NOT having their worst weeks since August 1st. Are they all in NY, NJ, Florida, Texas and California which peaked earlier?
Buckle your Seat Belts, It Could Be a Bumpy Ride
We won’t know for ~3+ weeks which direction COVID-19 case counts in L.A. County will go and how far following Labor Day weekend. Did the beastly weather drive more gatherings inside to escape the heat making transmission easier? Was Redondo Beach a one-off or was it the face of Southern California?
There are lots of factors that will affect where LA County cases are in the next weeks besides the Labor Day weekend but at least our average case count now is about 1,000/day lower than prior to July 4th. Let’s see where we go from here.
Vaccine Manufacturers Pledge
Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, BioNTech and Sanofi have signed a joint statement that they will not submit vaccine candidates for FDA review until their safety and efficacy is shown in large clinical trials.
Basic Preventive Measures are Still the Tools You Have to Make a Difference
WASH YOUR HANDS
MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING
WEAR A CLOTH FACE MASK
ISOLATE/QUARANTINE WHEN INDICATED
CHOOSE GREAT VENTILATION
GET YOUR FLU SHOT (MANY PHARMACIES HAVE IT NOW)
Quick Links to Resources
If you are looking for a test because you had close contact with a suspected/confirmed case or because you have symptoms, you need to quarantine/isolate. L.A. County updated their isolation instructions on 7/27/2020 – use the link to get up-to-date instructions: o Short URL for home quarantine instructions webpage with multiple languages: ph.lacounty.gov/covidquarantine o Short URL for home isolation instructions webpage with multiple languages: ph.lacounty.gov/covidisolation