With Revised TK-12 School Guidance Effective March 12, Layering Safety Protections Critical to Protecting Vulnerable Children, Teachers, and Staff - 1,297 New Positive Cases and 48 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

With the state issuing the new guidance on TK-12 schools, the layering of safety protections is critical to protect vulnerable children, teachers, and staff at schools. Starting tomorrow, March 12, indoor masking at schools will no longer be required. However, the state and the county are strongly recommending indoor masking for students, teachers, and staff, regardless of vaccination status, until transmission is lower.

School districts in LA County can continue to require masking at schools and during school activities, along with other appropriate safety protections, for their school community. At campuses where masking becomes optional, Public Health encourages that information about the importance of masking is shared with all members of the school community, and that schools support all teachers, staff, and students who want to keep wearing a mask.

The county is also aligning with the state in revising isolation and quarantine requirements for TK-12 schools. Schools must continue to require COVID-19 cases to isolate, and a negative test will be required to exit isolation after day five. Masking and testing for asymptomatic students remaining at schools during their quarantine period are strongly recommended.

The revised LA County TK-12 school guidance will be posted on the Public Health website later today.

Public Health also urges parents to fully vaccinate their eligible children, as the vaccines offer the strongest protection against the virus. As of March 6, 35% of children 5-11 years old and 85% of children 12–17-year-olds have received one dose of the vaccine and 29% of 5–11-year-olds and 77% of 12–17-year-olds are fully vaccinated.

Public Health data shows that unvaccinated children ages 5-11 were two times more likely to be infected when compared to those who were fully vaccinated. For those ages 12-17, unvaccinated teens were two and a half times more likely to be infected and five times more likely to be hospitalized when compared to those who were fully vaccinated.

To make it easier for children to get vaccinated, Public Health is working to make vaccines widely available at many school sites. For the month of March, 921 school vaccination sites are scheduled with 89% located in hard-hit community areas, including South Los Angeles (including Compton and Inglewood), Southeast Los Angeles County (including Bell, Cudahy, Hawaiian Gardens, South Gate, Huntington Park, Lakewood), the San Fernando Valley (Reseda, North Hills, Panorama City, Canoga Park, Pacoima, and Sylmar) and areas in the Antelope Valley.

Local schools are continuing to see a decline in the number of positive tests and test positivity for their students and staff. Between February 28 and March 4, over 470,000 tests were administered at K-12 schools across the county with 1,381 positive tests, resulting in a test positivity of 0.3%. There were five new school-associated outbreaks (two outbreaks in elementary schools, two in middle schools, and one in youth sports) between February 27 and March 5.

“I send my heartfelt condolences and wishes of healing to the countless people who have lost a loved one to this pandemic,” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “Although the County is now post-surge, Public Health cautions that community transmission is substantial and poses a risk for many individuals, including numerous people working at or attending schools. Having children and staff fully vaccinated creates a powerful layer of protection and continuing masking while transmission is substantial adds another level of safety for both children and staff in schools. When combined with additional safety precautions, including infection control and testing, schools can continue to offer safe environments for children, staff, and their families.”

Today, Public Health confirmed 48 additional deaths, and 1,297 new positive cases. Of the 48 new deaths reported today, five people were between the ages of 30-49, eight were between the ages of 50-64, 16 were between the ages of 65-79, and 13 were aged 80 years or older. Of the 48 newly reported deaths, 36 had underlying health conditions. Information on the three deaths reported by the City of Long Beach and the three deaths reported by the City of Pasadena is available at www.LongBeach.gov and www.CityofPasadena.gov. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 31,225.

Public Health has reported a total of 2,810,308 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County. Today’s positivity rate is .9%.

There are 588 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 11,526,900 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:

COVID-19 Daily Data (cases, deaths, testing, testing positivity rate, mortality rate, and hospitalizations)
Gender, Age, Race/Ethnicity and City/Community Cases and Deaths
Recovery Metrics
Contact Tracing Metrics
Skilled Nursing Facility Metrics
Citations due to Health Officer Order Noncompliance
Outbreaks:

Residential Congregate Settings
Non-Residential Settings
Homeless Service Settings

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

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health:
http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/
California Department of Public Health:
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Immunization/nCOV2019.aspx
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Spanish https://espanol.cdc.gov/enes/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
World Health Organization https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus
LA County residents can also call 2-1-1

For more information:

	Total Cases	NEW
Laboratory Confirmed Cases	2,810,308	1297
-- Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)*	2,657,535	1215
-- Long Beach	124,938	64
-- Pasadena	27,835	18
Deaths	31,225	48
-- Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)	29,581	42
-- Long Beach	1,236	3
-- Pasadena	408	3
Age Group (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- 0 to 4	81680
- 5 to 11	236839
- 12 to 17	231134
- 18 to 29	591861
- 30 to 49	847137
- 50 to 64	439840
- 65 to 79	170620
- over 80	55548
- Under Investigation	2876
Gender (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Female	1351037
- Male	1231752
- Other	1000
- Under Investigation	73746
Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	4901
- Asian	162102
- Black	133279
- Hispanic/Latino	1219833
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	13579
- White	339796
- Other	291536
- Under Investigation	492509
Hospitalization (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Hospitalized (Ever)	134948
Deaths Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	72
- Asian	3705
- Black	2728
- Hispanic/Latino	15255
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	107
- White	7316
- Other	304
- Under Investigation	94
CITY / COMMUNITY**	Cases	Case Rate
City of Agoura Hills	4098	19624
City of Alhambra	16511	19039
City of Arcadia	7875	13635
City of Artesia	4115	24501
City of Avalon	62	1602
City of Azusa	13604	27186
City of Baldwin Park	22692	29559
City of Bell	13709	37733
City of Bell Gardens	14024	32560
City of Bellflower	23080	29691
City of Beverly Hills	8165	23653
City of Bradbury	64	5987
City of Burbank	21923	20454
City of Calabasas	3865	15890
City of Carson	25134	26782
City of Cerritos	8257	16492
City of Claremont	6072	16643
City of Commerce*	4477	34257
City of Compton	32796	32828
City of Covina	14558	29691
City of Cudahy	9891	40625
City of Culver City	7248	18181
City of Diamond Bar	8977	15608
City of Downey	35544	31107
City of Duarte	5109	23206
City of El Monte	32509	27722
City of El Segundo	2740	16323
City of Gardena	16055	26187
City of Glendale	43869	21245
City of Glendora	11645	22070
City of Hawaiian Gardens	4151	28284
City of Hawthorne	22333	25153
City of Hermosa Beach	3236	16451
City of Hidden Hills	254	13439
City of Huntington Park	21805	36657
City of Industry	377	86270
City of Inglewood	29029	25558
City of Irwindale	535	36669
City of La Canada Flintridge	2802	13541
City of La Habra Heights	162	2970
City of La Mirada	10302	20771
City of La Puente	12593	30943
City of La Verne	6974	20954
City of Lakewood	18756	23339
City of Lancaster*	50316	31142
City of Lawndale	8001	23803
City of Lomita	4220	20358
City of Lynwood*	24443	33926
City of Malibu	2045	15778
City of Manhattan Beach	4833	13425
City of Maywood	10358	36928
City of Monrovia	8149	21003
City of Montebello	19055	29600
City of Monterey Park	11238	18050
City of Norwalk	32935	30602
City of Palmdale	52607	33093
City of Palos Verdes Estates	1475	10908
City of Paramount	18644	33279
City of Pico Rivera	20805	32364
City of Pomona	50823	32593
City of Rancho Palos Verdes	4783	11189
City of Redondo Beach	9777	14232
City of Rolling Hills	185	9536
City of Rolling Hills Estates	971	11968
City of Rosemead	10540	19042
City of San Dimas*	7931	22978
City of San Fernando	10369	42130
City of San Gabriel	7332	17903
City of San Marino	1388	10454
City of Santa Clarita	53460	24253
City of Santa Fe Springs	6288	34241
City of Santa Monica	16611	17968
City of Sierra Madre	1499	13641
City of Signal Hill	2811	23828
City of South El Monte	6515	31195
City of South Gate	37966	38680
City of South Pasadena	3922	15054
City of Temple City	6090	16706
City of Torrance	22406	15011
City of Vernon	306	146411
City of Walnut	4743	15535
City of West Covina	28952	26749
City of West Hollywood	7793	21090
City of Westlake Village	269	3218
City of Whittier	23202	26537
Los Angeles	1157424	28616
Los Angeles - Adams-Normandie	2571	31346
Los Angeles - Alsace	3510	28204
Los Angeles - Angeles National Forest	6	15000
Los Angeles - Angelino Heights	617	24660
Los Angeles - Arleta	13561	39456
Los Angeles - Atwater Village	3475	23694
Los Angeles - Baldwin Hills	7352	23621
Los Angeles - Bel Air	1442	17108
Los Angeles - Beverly Crest	2304	18395
Los Angeles - Beverlywood	2968	22531
Los Angeles - Boyle Heights*	32991	37971
Los Angeles - Brentwood	5373	17357
Los Angeles - Brookside	93	16007
Los Angeles - Cadillac-Corning	1803	25319
Los Angeles - Canoga Park	19936	30535
Los Angeles - Carthay	2833	19724
Los Angeles - Central	14774	37890
Los Angeles - Century City	2276	17792
Los Angeles - Century Palms/Cove	13414	39726
Los Angeles - Chatsworth	9204	24835
Los Angeles - Cheviot Hills	1589	17326
Los Angeles - Chinatown	1951	24324
Los Angeles - Cloverdale/Cochran	3995	27451
Los Angeles - Country Club Park	3579	23619
Los Angeles - Crenshaw District	3909	28267
Los Angeles - Crestview	2807	24692
Los Angeles - Del Rey	5861	19578
Los Angeles - Downtown*	11554	42004
Los Angeles - Eagle Rock	8901	22484
Los Angeles - East Hollywood	7219	24649
Los Angeles - Echo Park	3266	22910
Los Angeles - El Sereno	13116	31372
Los Angeles - Elysian Park	1347	23582
Los Angeles - Elysian Valley	2685	26399
Los Angeles - Encino	10081	22317
Los Angeles - Exposition	962	28924
Los Angeles - Exposition Park	14137	31474
Los Angeles - Faircrest Heights	869	24139
Los Angeles - Figueroa Park Square	2999	34388
Los Angeles - Florence-Firestone	19319	40719
Los Angeles - Glassell Park	7870	24902
Los Angeles - Gramercy Place	3163	29385
Los Angeles - Granada Hills	15818	27183
Los Angeles - Green Meadows	8455	39316
Los Angeles - Hancock Park	3270	19191
Los Angeles - Harbor City	6917	23794
Los Angeles - Harbor Gateway	12029	27589
Los Angeles - Harbor Pines	452	18763
Los Angeles - Harvard Heights	5073	28129
Los Angeles - Harvard Park	14827	39085
Los Angeles - Highland Park	12767	26383
Los Angeles - Historic Filipinotown	4213	30375
Los Angeles - Hollywood	15671	22960
Los Angeles - Hollywood Hills	5099	17324
Los Angeles - Hyde Park	9129	31986
Los Angeles - Jefferson Park	2449	30336
Los Angeles - Koreatown	12690	24549
Los Angeles - Lafayette Square	1222	26804
Los Angeles - Lake Balboa	12094	28655
Los Angeles - Lakeview Terrace	4561	34729
Los Angeles - Leimert Park	4188	27489
Los Angeles - Lincoln Heights	9965	30570
Los Angeles - Little Armenia	2380	29657
Los Angeles - Little Bangladesh	6668	23526
Los Angeles - Little Tokyo	1060	33833
Los Angeles - Longwood	1300	30204
Los Angeles - Los Feliz	3662	16947
Los Angeles - Manchester Square	2367	27730
Los Angeles - Mandeville Canyon	492	15749
Los Angeles - Mar Vista	7079	16668
Los Angeles - Marina Peninsula	639	14656
Los Angeles - Melrose	19680	25329
Los Angeles - Mid-city	3360	22355
Los Angeles - Miracle Mile	3324	18482
Los Angeles - Mission Hills	9321	38638
Los Angeles - Mt. Washington	6263	25939
Los Angeles - North Hills	19822	32192
Los Angeles - North Hollywood	45662	30156
Los Angeles - Northridge	18822	26967
Los Angeles - Pacific Palisades	3186	14964
Los Angeles - Pacoima	31893	41431
Los Angeles - Palisades Highlands	598	15549
Los Angeles - Palms	7738	17636
Los Angeles - Panorama City	26841	35669
Los Angeles - Park La Brea	2189	16119
Los Angeles - Pico-Union	13628	32570
Los Angeles - Playa Del Rey	399	12484
Los Angeles - Playa Vista	2186	19969
Los Angeles - Porter Ranch	7045	19796
Los Angeles - Rancho Park	1366	20823
Los Angeles - Regent Square	631	22698
Los Angeles - Reseda	24404	31852
Los Angeles - Reseda Ranch	1397	30134
Los Angeles - Reynier Village	844	19962
Los Angeles - San Pedro*	19340	24783
Los Angeles - Shadow Hills	960	21612
Los Angeles - Sherman Oaks	18336	21015
Los Angeles - Silverlake	9302	21101 < #####