LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Saturday confirmed 48 more deaths and 2,056 new cases of coronavirus.
To date (June 20), Public Health has identified 81,636 positive cases of COVID-19 and 3,110 fatalities across all areas of LA County, including 1,017 coronavirus cases and 20 deaths in Palmdale; 852 cases and 13 deaths in Lancaster; 49 cases and nine deaths in Quartz Hill; 37 cases and two deaths in Lake Los Angeles; 47 cases and no deaths in the Littlerock/Pearblossom, Juniper Hills areas; and 28 cases and no deaths in Sun Village. View the latest detailed report here.
Ninety-three percent of people who died had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, approximately 42% of deaths occurred among Latino/Latinx residents, 29% among White residents, 17% among Asian residents, 11% among Black/African American residents, less than 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races. There are 1,406 people who are currently hospitalized, 29% of these people are in the ICU and 22% are on ventilators.
As more businesses reopen, Los Angeles County health officials stressed the importance of wearing face coverings to prevent COVID-19 cases from spiking.
“I get a lot of questions about why this is important, especially from individuals who are not worried about becoming infected themselves,” public health director Barbara Ferrer said. “The important issue here is that we’re not asking you to wear the face covering to protect yourself. We ask you to cover your mouth and nose to protect others, especially since you can be infected with COVID-19 and have no symptoms of illness.
“… Even if you tested negative, that negative test result only tells you your status the day you were tested,” Ferrer said. “You could easily become infected the very next day and unknowingly pass COVID-19 onto others.”
Ferrer’s comments came after Gov. Gavin Newsom mandated that Californians wear face coverings in virtually all settings outside the home.
Some opponents of mask requirements have loudly protested that they are an imposition on personal freedom, and incite fear among the populace, preventing people from visiting local businesses.
But Ferrer stressed the urgency for people to wear the masks anytime they are associating with people outside their own households. She said it will ensure that businesses can remain open.
The rate of people testing positive for the virus was 8% as of Friday, a number that has remained largely unchanged for weeks.
Ferrer said if any of the key indicators begin rising, the county will have to consider whether to reimplement restrictions.
“We cannot overwhelm the health system,” she said.
An interactive dashboard is available that provides comprehensive information on COVID-19 cases, along with maps and graphs showing data by city and community. To view Public Health’s COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard, visit: http://dashboard.publichealth.lacounty.gov/covid19_surveillance_dashboard/
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