Merced County coronavirus cases hit 100. More COVID-19 testing on the way, officials say
Coronavirus cases in Merced County hit triple digits Thursday, as those infected reached an even 100, according to County Public Health.
Those having survived the disease still outnumber active cases, with 57 individuals recovered and 40 still ill. Three residents have died from COVID-19 related complications in Merced County.
Los Banos remained at 34 infected residents Thursday, but maintained the lead. The City of Merced increased by one to 18 total cases. Delhi saw four new cases, raising its tally to 11 infected persons.
Gustine and Atwater remain at seven cases each.
County Public Health discloses numbers only for communities with five or more infected residents.
In California as of Thursday, there are 39,135 confirmed coronavirus cases and 1,520 deaths.
During a virtual Merced town hall Wednesday, County Public Health announced that Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to add at least 80 testing sites to the state will include one or more new COVID-19 testing sites in Merced County.
The new testing site will be through a state-wide contract with OptumServe aims to increase testing capacity in underserved communities, such as those with a high volume of farm workers and communities of color, according to a state news release.
“We know that communities of color are disproportionately affected by COVID-19,” said Gov. Newsom in the release. “We must ensure that we are deploying testing equitably in an effort to reduce the higher death rates we are seeing in African American and Latino communities.”
The site will open in Merced County within two weeks and immediately increase testing capacity by 132 tests per day, said County Supervising Epidemiologist Dr. Kristynn Sullivan.
“We have been plagued by supply chain issues in terms of specimen collection, testing capacity and a variety of other things,” Sullivan said. “(The lab) will bring with it significantly increased testing ability,” she added.
The large state-wide contract incurs little to no cost to the county, Sullivan said. In the long term, she said it’s possible an additional OptumServe testing facility will open in Merced County.
Increased capacity means less stringent testing criteria. Asymptomatic individuals with reason to believe they may have contracted coronavirus will be treated through the new testing site, Sullivan said.
The ultimate goal is to be able to serve every Merced County resident who wants to get tested, she said.
The OptumServe testing facilities are organized into “lanes” — although not in the drive-through style, Sullivan explained. Each lane is divided into registration, testing and laboratory components with the capacity to serve 132 individuals each day.
Depending on the facility, additional lanes may be added to test more patients. Officials are unsure where the new site will set up shop, Sullivan said.
The testing format allows for rapid turnaround time, she said. Results take at least 48 hours to become available.
As individuals being tested increase, Sullivan said residents should expect to see a rising number of confirmed coronavirus cases.
Before then, however, Sullivan said officials expect to see a rise in cases to due fewer individuals practicing social distancing, an issue not just in Merced County, but nationwide.
She said a combination of nice weather, a recent holiday, pressure to reopen businesses and public spaces, skepticism over the severity of the pandemic and people becoming tired of isolating at home may lend to decreased social distancing.
“There’s some wariness, understandably so,” Sullivan said.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 5:47 PM.
