4 New Covid Deaths, Community Levels Decrease
Tuolumne County Public Health reports two Covid deaths that occurred in June and July, a man in his 70s and a woman over 90. There are 83 new lab-confirmed community cases and 46 Sierra Conservation Center (SCC) inmate cases from Saturday, August 20th to today, Friday, August 26th, for a total of 129 cases. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation reports 56 active cases at SCC the 4th most in a California state prison, last week there were 42 active cases. There are 61 known active community cases down from 71. Positive home tests (rapid/antigen tests) are not counted in the Covid numbers and remain unknown. Lab results come from hospitals or other lab-confirmed testing.
Hospitalizations are reported as a 14-day daily average based on reported data from the hospital to the California Department of Public Health. The daily average is 1 and represents people admitted to Adventist Sonora regardless of their county of residence.
The newly reported Covid-19 community cases this week include 12 cases age 17 and younger and 28 cases age 60 or older. The new Covid cases demographics: 3 girls and 4 boy age 0 to 11, 2 girl and 3 boys age 12 to 17, 9 women and 3 men age 18 to 29, 5 women, 5 men, and 1 other in their 30s, 5 women and 3 men in their 40s, 8 women and 4 men in their 50s, 12 women and 7 men in their 60s, 5 women and 3 men in their 70s, and 1 woman age 90 or older.
The total current case rate, a 14-day average for Tuolumne County decreased to 18.1 from 20.2 per 100,000 population. A total of 89 more are counted as released from isolation, in all 13,210 have been released from isolation. The 7-day test positivity rate is 12.4% up from 11.9%.
Protect yourself and those around you from COVID-19:
- Get vaccinated; contact your healthcare provider or pharmacy about flu vaccine
- Wear a mask in public, especially indoors
- Stay home when sick!
- Keep your distance and avoid crowds when possible
- Wash hands and clean surfaces frequently
Monkeypox Tuolumne Public health states there are 3,065 probable and confirmed cases in California, from 38 local jurisdictions, an increase of 709 cases this week. No cases have been identified in Tuolumne County to date. The risk to the general public is considered low at this time. While California is working to increase the number of vaccines available, current availability is extremely limited. Tuolumne County does not have vaccines available at this time. On August 1st, Governor Newsom declared a State of Emergency to support the monkeypox response statewide as detailed here. For more information, including prevention information about monkeypox, go here.
Calaveras Public Health updates weekly on Tuesdays. They report two deaths, one female in her 80s and one male in his 90s. A total of 135 have passed away due to Covid since the pandemic began. There are 44 new lab-confirmed cases from August 17th to the 23rd. The number of cases is down from 101 new lab-confirmed cases among residents last week and also down from 47 the week before that. Calaveras reports 38 active cases, last week there were 44 active cases. There is one active Covid hospitalization.
Calaveras has moved to the low (green) Community Covid Level. Tuolumne county is now in the medium (yellow) Community Level it had been in the High Community Level since June 24th (nine weeks). The Community level is determined by the CDC based on higher of the new hospital admissions and inpatient beds metrics, based on the current level of new cases per 100,000 population in the past 7 days. According to the CDC, Covid transmission remains high in nearly all counties in California and for many counties throughout the United States.
The Mother Lode fairgrounds testing site will be closed Monday, September 5th for the Labor Day holiday otherwise testing is open 7 days a week from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. with closures for meal breaks between 11 am to 12 pm and 4 pm to 5 pm. The State testing site at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds launched Test to Treat operations as detailed here.
- At-home test kits can be ordered for free at https://www.covid.gov/tests.
- Families with school-age children may obtain free kits by contacting the Tuolumne County Superintendent of Schools office.
- A limited number of free at-home kits are available at the Public Health Department (note, as a healthcare facility, masks are required at all times in our lobby).
- At-home test kits are also available for purchase at pharmacies.
- Testing sites at other locations near the area can be found by visiting: https://myturn.ca.gov/testing.html
COVID-19 Vaccine children aged 6 months to 5 years are now eligible for COVID vaccination. The Tuolumne Public Health team has added vaccinations for this age group to our clinic schedule beginning next week or families can check with their child’s healthcare provider. Appointments for June 27, June 29, or July 1 at the health department on Cedar Road in Sonora are available at myturn.ca.gov. For more information click here: https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-moderna-and-pfizer-biontech-covid-19-vaccines-children
More information about Covid Vaccine booster shots can be found at: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/clinical-considerations/covid-19-vaccines-us.html. Appointments in Tuolumne and Calaveras can be made through myturn.ca.gov or by calling 833-422-4255 or through local pharmacies, more details are here.
