SLO County adds more than 600 new coronavirus cases, 2 deaths
San Luis Obispo County added 611 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, according to data from the county Public Health Department.
The figures don’t represent an accurate day-over-day increase from Monday because the county is continuing to process backlogged COVID-19 testing data that may date back a week or so.
San Luis Obispo County spokeswoman Michelle Shoresman told The Tribune on Dec. 28 that the state changed how it relays information about new cases to counties, and the county Public Health Department is adjusting to the new method.
On Monday, the department issued a news release saying that it had finished processing backlogged cases over the holiday weekend, but due to outages of CalREDIE, the state’s database, some local numbers would not be reported.
Shoresman previously said that the local numbers will reflect the state’s numbers over the coming days and weeks as the county confirms more of the state’s reported new cases.
In total, 11,895 San Luis Obispo County residents have tested positive for coronavirus since mid-March.
On Tuesday, the county reported an additional two deaths due to coronavirus. Locally, 90 people have died due to the virus.
As of Tuesday, San Luis Obispo County remains in California’s most restrictive tier of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy and under the Southern California regional stay-at-home order.
The state renewed the order for the region on Dec. 29, 2020, because intensive care unit capacity has not improved during the past three weeks, said Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health and Human Services Secretary, at a news conference.
What is ICU bed availability in Southern California and SLO County?
According to the state, 17 of San Luis Obispo County’s intensive care unit beds were available as of Tuesday. Five more patients were hospitalized for COVID-19 symptoms on Tuesday, bringing the total number of COVID-19 hospitalizations to 58, according to the state.
Even though San Luis Obispo County’s ICU availability isn’t below 15%, the ICU availability in the Southern California region means that the county falls under the stay-at-home order.
As of Tuesday, ICU availability in the Southern California region remained at 0%, health department data showed.
What tier is SLO County in?
Tuesday marked the ninth consecutive week San Luis Obispo County was considered “widespread,” with metrics worsening across the board.
The county’s adjusted average was 43.8 new cases per day per 100,000 people, a small increase from the 43.7 case rate reported the week prior. The unadjusted case rate was 48 cases per day per 100,000 people, according to the state.
The state did not release new data on the number of COVID-19 tests conducted per day on Tuesday. The latest testing data, released Dec. 1, indicated the county had conducted 678.9 tests per 100,000 people.
As of Tuesday, the county had a 10% positive rate, up from the 8.9% previously reported.
The latest health equity metric released Jan. 5 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 at 12.3%.
New COVID-19 cases by city
Here is where new COVID-19 cases were added on Tuesday in San Luis Obispo County, according to ReadySLO.org:
Paso Robles: 77
San Luis Obispo: 53
Nipomo: 42
Arroyo Grande: 26
Grover Beach: 22
Templeton: 19
Oceano: 17
San Miguel: 13
Morro Bay: 12
Los Osos: 12
Pismo Beach: 9
Atascadero State Hospital: 8
Santa Margarita: 3
Avila Beach: 3
Shandon: 2
Shell Beach: 2
Creston: 2
Cambria: 2
Cayucos: 1
San Simeon: 1
The locations of nine cases were listed as “other.” A total of 49 cases remained under investigation.
Outbreaks at the California Men’s Colony and Atascadero State Hospital have been greater than indicated by county data, according to data from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the Department of State Hospitals.
CDCR had recorded 1,215 total coronavirus cases among CMC inmates as of Tuesday, with 543 active cases in custody, 535 of those testing positive in the last 14 days.
Two inmates have died due to COVID-19.
The prison currently has the highest number of active cases among CDCR facilities, just ahead of Ironwood State Prison in Blythe, which reported 542 active cases.
DHS reported Tuesday that 122 patients have tested positive at Atascadero State Hospital since mid-May. The agency reports 26 of those patients have tested positive within the last 14 days. The facility reports no patient hospitalizations or deaths.
Cal Poly’s documented total of coronavirus cases involving both on-campus and off-campus students was 893 as of Monday, when in-person classes and on-campus testing resumed. That figure had not been updated as of Tuesday.
SLO County coronavirus cases by the numbers
Here’s a look at San Luis Obispo County’s cases on Tuesday, according to the county Public Health Department.
- Active cases: 2,772
- Recovered cases: 9,011
- People recovering at home: 2,718
- People receiving hospital care: 54
- People in intensive care units: 14
- Deaths due to COVID-19: 90
For a detailed look at local coronavirus cases by age, occupation and more, visit ReadySLO.org.
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. To make an appointment, visit emergencySLO.org/testing; you can register by phone at 888-634-1123.
This story was originally published January 5, 2021 at 2:22 PM.