LA County Reports 10 COVID-19 Deaths, Highest Daily Toll To Date
By Brian Frank and Robert Garrova
Published Mar 31, 2020 1:28 PM
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L.A. County health officials said today that 10 more people here have died because of COVID-19, the highest daily toll they have reported so far. In addition, they said that a person whose death was reported yesterday is now thought to be the first local health care worker to succumb to the disease caused by the new coronavirus.
The new numbers were reported by public health director Barbara Ferrer during the daily update from the county's coronavirus task force. She said:
"As our numbers grow, so do the numbers of people that actually present themselves as being in good health. And as I've acknowledged every day, this is a hard part of our day at the department, because these aren't just numbers. These are real people, and they're being mourned today by their families and their friends."
So far, 54 people testing positive for COVID-19 have died countywide. While the vast majority — 87% — have had underlying health conditions, COVID-19 has also killed some people who appeared to be generally healthy, Ferrer said.
Among those whose deaths were newly reported, four were younger than 65 and one was younger than 41. The health care worker who died was older than 60.
Ferrer said the local mortality rate has held at 1.8%. She said that's higher than the national average but on par with larger jurisdictions.
She also said anyone who tests positive or suspects they may be positive should begin notifying anyone they've had contact with up to 48 hours before their symptoms appeared, cited mounting scientific evidence that asymptomatic individuals can transmit the virus.
NEW NUMBERS
548 new cases in L.A. County, for a total of 890 in the last 48 hours
3,011 total cases, including 115 in Long Beach and 25 in Pasadena
20% of all positive cases have been hospitalized at some point, or 594 people, and the vast majority of those currently hospitalized (173 of 267) are 55 or older and older
About 25% of those hospitalized are in the ICU, including 6 people under the age of 35
10 L.A. firefighters have tested positive — three are still in isolation and seven have recovered and returned to work
7 people in the sheriff's department have tested positive, including 5 sworn and 2 civilian personnel
49 sheriff's staffers are under medical quarantine and 102 are under self-quarantine
NEW TESTING CENTERS
In addition to these numbers, the county provided updates on new testing centers set to open soon:
High Desert Medical Group office on 15th Street West in Lancaster
Fentanyl and other drugs fuel record deaths among people experiencing homelessness in L.A. County. From 2019 to 2021, deaths jumped 70% to more than 2,200 in a single year.
