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313 N. Figueroa Street, Room 806  |  Los Angeles, CA 90012  |  (213) 240-8144  |  media@ph.lacounty.gov

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For Immediate Release:

February 18, 2021

Public Health Remains Vigilant Following Super Bowl and Holiday Weekends 153 New Deaths and 2,873 New Confirmed Cases of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 153 new deaths and 2,873 new cases of COVID-19. To date, Public Health identified 1,174,340 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 19,514 deaths.

There are 2,757 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 31% of these people are in the ICU. Testing results are available for nearly 5,729,000 individuals with 19% of people testing positive. Today's daily test positivity rate is 5.0%.

Of the 153 new deaths reported today, 43 people who passed away were over the age of 80, 53 people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, 32 people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, 10 people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49, and two people who died were between the ages of 18 and 29. Ten deaths were reported by the City of Long Beach and three deaths were reported by the City of Pasadena.

Public Health is concerned that actions over the Super Bowl weekend and this past holiday weekend could lead to increases in cases if individuals were not taking precautions and businesses were not fully adhering to their sector specific protocols. Public Health is carefully monitoring data over the upcoming weeks to see the impact across County communities.

If you have symptoms or think you were exposed to someone with COVID-19 or if you were in a crowd or gathering where people were close together and not wearing face coverings and/or keeping their distance you should get tested. Isolate immediately from your family and others if you have symptoms or test positive for COVID-19.

Public Health inspectors go out every day to make sure businesses are compliant with the Los Angeles County Health Officer Order, identify violations, and issue citations for businesses out of compliance. Compliance checks conducted during the Super Bowl weekend revealed Health Officer Order violations including: indoor dining, outdoor dining areas with enclosures, TVs turned on, overcrowding, tables spaced less than eight feet apart, and the lack of face shields for employees. This past holiday weekend inspectors noted restaurants with outdoor dining areas with enclosures, tables less than eight feet apart, TVs turned on, staff without face shields, and retail stores not monitoring occupancy. From February 3 through February 14, a total of 117 citations were issued to businesses including restaurants, food markets, gyms, personal care salons, hair salons/barbershops, and shopping malls for noncompliance with Health Officer Orders. Since the end of August, a total of 984 citations have been issued.

Public Health is carefully tracking outbreaks at worksites and continues to assist sectors with required business protocol compliance and safety measures. There are currently 1,078 ongoing outbreak investigations; this is a 20% reduction from the 1,351 outbreak investigations reported on February 4.

Workers and employers can anonymously report to Public Health clusters of COVID-19 cases at worksites as well as violations of Health Officer Orders and Protocols in the workplace. They can call 888-700-9995, Monday - Friday from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., excluding holidays. A complaint system to report violations is also available online at www.publichealth.lacounty.gov

“To the many families and friends experiencing the loss of losing a loved one to COVID-19, we send our deepest sympathies,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. "As everyone knows who is sick with COVID-19 or worrying about a loved one in the hospital infected with the virus, we are not out of the woods yet. With almost 3,000 people testing positive still, community transmission remains high. It is so important residents and businesses continue to follow the guidance and directives in the Health Officer Order so that our recovery journey continues as we slow the spread of the virus. Each day more and more people are vaccinated and if we diligently adhere to the public health safety measures while increasing vaccinations, we can get to the end of this pandemic and save many more lives."

Public Health encourages L.A. County businesses to take advantage of the COVID-19 Safety Compliance Certification Program. The Program allows employers and employees to voluntarily participate in a free online training about COVID-19 infection control protocols and allows businesses to self-certify that they are fully implementing protocols in compliance with infection control and physical distancing requirements. To date, a total of 22,058 employees and employers have completed the training.

COVID-19 vaccine supply remains very limited. For information about vaccine appointments in L.A. County, when your turn is coming up, to sign up for a vaccination newsletter, and much more, visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).

The Reopening Protocols, COVID-19 Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Roadmap to Recovery, Recovery Dashboard, and additional things you can do to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

Please see additional information below:

Laboratory Confirmed Total Cases 1174340*

Deaths 19514

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

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

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

Hospitalization

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

CITY / COMMUNITY** Cases (Case Rate)

These numbers are subject to change based on further investigation. 197 cases and 7 deaths previously reported were not in Public Health's jurisdiction. * Means that case numbers include cases associated with correctional facility outbreaks located in the city/community. **Rate is crude and is per 100,000. This represents the number of cases per 100,000 people and allows for the proportional comparison of cities of different sizes.

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

The Department of Public Health is committed to promoting health equity and ensuring optimal health and well-being for all 10 million residents of Los Angeles County. Through a variety of programs, community partnerships and services, Public Health oversees environmental health, disease control, and community and family health. Nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health comprises nearly 4,500 employees and has an annual budget of $1.2 billion. To learn more about Los Angeles County Public Health, please visit www.publichealth .lacounty.gov, and follow LA County Public Health on social media at twitter.com/lacounty.gov, and follow LA County Public Health on social media at twitter.com/lapublichealth, facebook.com/lapublichealth, instagram.com/lapublichealth and youtube.com/lapublichealth.




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