OC Health Officials Report 905 New Coronavirus Cases, 22 Additional Deaths
SANTA ANA (CBSLA) — Orange County health officials reported 22 additional coronavirus deaths and 905 new cases Thursday bringing the county's caseload over 32,000.
The countywide totals now stand at 543 deaths and 32,648 cases.
Of the deaths reported Thursday, six were skilled nursing facility residents. Of the total death toll, 245 were skilled nursing facility residents and 17 were assisted living facility residents.
The number of hospitalized patients dipped from 699 on Wednesday to 690, and the number of patients in intensive care remained at 233, according to the Orange County Health Care Agency.
In the county's jails, 454 inmates had tested positive for COVID-19, with 411 having recovered and 43 in medical isolation being treated for symptoms. The county is awaiting the results of 92 tests.
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County officials said 380,657 coronavirus tests have been administered during the pandemic and 17,091 recoveries have been documented.
The county's case rate per 100,000 residents jumped from 211.4 to 220,8, which is far higher than the California Department of Public Health threshold of 25 per 100,000 residents. The rate of residents testing positive for COVID-19 ticked down from 12.9% to 12.6%, which is higher than the state's desired rate of 8%.
Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do has started a campaign to encourage residents to use face coverings. The campaign, #MaskUpOC, will focus on using social media to promote face coverings as a way to stem the spread of coronavirus.
Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered all school campuses to remain closed when the academic year begins in counties on the state's monitoring list due to spiking coronavirus cases -- including Orange, Los Angeles, San Diego and Riverside counties.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)