SLO County adds 333 new coronavirus cases as new stay-at-home order launches
San Luis Obispo County added 333 new COVID-19 cases since Friday, seeing the most dramatic increase in daily new cases locally on Saturday.
The jump in coronavirus cases comes as San Luis Obispo County enters its second stay-at-home order.
San Luis Obispo County added a total of 183 coronavirus cases on Saturday, nearly 60 cases more than any previous daily case count tally before.
On Sunday, 89 coronavirus cases were added and 58 were added Monday.
Paso Robles, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo each added more than 50 coronavirus cases over the weekend and Monday.
The total number of active coronavirus cases in the county increased from 793 on Friday to 868 on Monday, according ReadySLO.org.
The county reported 562 new coronavirus cases in the last seven days. A total of 6,873 San Luis Obispo County residents have tested positive for coronavirus since March, the county said.
On Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced new regulations tied to intensive care unit capacity. Regions in California with low ICU capacity will face more severe restrictions.
San Luis Obispo County is considered to be part of the Southern California region — along with Imperial, Inyo, Los Angeles, Mono, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.
In San Luis Obispo County, there are 53 intensive care unit beds and 369 hospital beds, 14 of which are occupied by coronavirus patients, according to ReadySLO.org.
The stay-at-home order, which went into effect just before midnight Sunday, will remain in place for at least three weeks.
As of Monday, local retail stores are limited to 20% capacity inside. Restaurants are closed to indoor and outdoor dining, and bars, wineries and hair salons are required to close. In addition, places of worship will only be allowed to have outdoor services.
San Luis Obispo County remained in California’s most restrictive tier of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy as of Monday
The county returned to the purple tier on Nov. 16. That means that many local businesses must revert to extremely limited indoor capacity or close their indoor services altogether.
What tier is SLO County in?
As of Monday, coronavirus transmission in San Luis Obispo County was considered “widespread,” according to the state public health department.
Dec. 1 marked the fourth consecutive week with an adjusted case rate above the threshold of the red tier — seven new cases per day per 100,000 people. Case rate is adjusted by the number of tests conducted within the county per day.
The county’s adjusted average increased from 10.2 to 11.4 new cases per day per 100,000 people.
The unadjusted case rate continued to rise, increasing to 22.8 new cases per day per 100,000.
Along with the rise in case rate, the number of tests conducted per day also increased.
According to state data, San Luis Obispo County has conducted an average of 678.9 tests per day per 100,000 people — an increase from the 651.5 tests per 100,000 people that the county reported Nov. 24.
San Luis Obispo County’s positivity rate was at 4% as of the latest data, representing a .4-point improvement from the week prior.
The latest health equity metric released Nov. 16 calculated that the positivity rate for people who live in the 12 census tracts in San Luis Obispo County ranked in the lowest quarter of California’s Health Place Index was 4.8%. New data on the health equity metric was not released Tuesday.
New COVID-19 cases by city
Here is where new COVID-19 cases were added since Friday in San Luis Obispo County, according to ReadySLO.org:
- Paso Robles: 70
- Arroyo Grande: 62
- San Luis Obispo: 56
- Atascadero: 36
- Nipomo: 22
- Oceano: 19
- Grover Beach: 17
- San Miguel: 13
- California Men’s Colony: 11
Pismo Beach: 9
- Templeton: 9
- Los Osos: 6
- Morro Bay: 6
- Santa Margarita: 5
Cal Poly (on campus): 3
Creston: 2
Avila Beach: 1
The locations of seven cases were listed as “other.” A total of 28 cases were under investigation, two more cases than Friday.
Cal Poly’s documented total of coronavirus cases involving both on-campus and off-campus students was 862 as of Monday.
For a detailed look at local coronavirus cases by age, occupation and more, visit ReadySLO.org.
SLO County coronavirus cases by the numbers
Here’s a look at San Luis Obispo County’s cases on Monday, according to the county Public Health Department:
- Active cases: 868
- Recovered cases: 5,957
- People recovering at home: 853
- People receiving hospital care: 15
- People in intensive care units: 4
- Deaths due to COVID-19: 42 (including two California Men’s Colony inmates)
Where to get a COVID-19 test
The San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department is urging anyone with COVID-19 symptoms, or those who have come into contact with someone with the virus, to get tested.
Free coronavirus testing is available at clinics throughout San Luis Obispo County:
- Grover Beach: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Ramona Garden Park Center, 993 Ramona Ave.
- Morro Bay: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Veterans Memorial Building, 209 Surf St.
Nipomo: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Senior Center 200 E. Dana St.
- Paso Robles: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Frontier Pavilion, Paso Robles Event Center, 2198 Riverside Ave. The testing site will remain open for an additional two hours starting on Tuesday, Dec. 1.
- San Luis Obispo: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. Veterans Memorial Hall, 801 Grand Ave.
In addition, COVID-19 testing is available through private healthcare providers, urgent care centers and the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Lab.
San Luis Obispo County public health officials urge people to use self-swab at-home tests if they are not experiencing coronavirus symptoms or have not been exposed to a person who has COVID-19.
Visit ReadySLO.org for the latest public health updates and recommendations. ReadySLO.org lists more than a dozen urgent care centers that offer COVID-19 testing.
To make an appointment, visit emergencySLO.org/testing; you can register by phone at 888-634-1123.
How to report a COVID-19 code violation
To report violations of coronavirus-related orders meant to limit the spread of COVID-19, call the San Luis Obispo County COVID Enforcement hotline at 805-788-2222 or email covid-compliance@co.slo.ca.us.
This story was originally published December 7, 2020 at 1:33 PM.
