Total coronavirus cases reported in Merced County pass 150, area counties see cases climb
Coronavirus cases continued to climb in Merced County on Wednesday, up six from the previous day for a total of 152, according to County Public Health. Of those, 63 COVID-19 positive individuals are still sick, 86 have recovered and three have died.
County Public Health officials have said cases are expected to continue rising since COVID-19 testing was expanded Monday through a state partnership with OptumServe.
The new testing site at the Merced County Fairgrounds is expected to test each resident who wants to be screened, and provide a clearer picture of coronavirus in the county.
While cases add up, the state recently reached several benchmarks indicating that it may begin to transition to Stage 2 of the stay at home order. Gov. Gavin Newsom Thursday is expected to outline next steps for reopening some businesses as early as Friday.
Merced County began preparing for this announcement with the launch of www.reopenmercedcounty.com today, in collaboration with the county’s six cities.
“The idea of this site is to get our business owners better prepared to reopen when that time comes,” said Merced County Board of Supervisors Chairman Rodrigo Espinoza in a news release.
“When the Governor pulls the trigger to reopen another group of businesses, we don’t want them all at the starting line, we want them as close to the finish line as possible.”
The county also reported that 91 homeless individuals have been temporarily housed across Merced County so far. The homeless, who are considered especially vulnerable during the pandemic, are sheltered at area hotels through the state housing program Project Roomkey.
To date, 2,737 coronavirus tests have been performed in Merced County. This includes tests through both the commercial and public health lab systems. Negatives tests account for 2,329, positives total 152 and 256 are still pending.
The Merced County COVID-19 information page was updated today to include an interactive dashboard with local and regional COVID-19 statistics.
Coronavirus in neighboring counties
The COVID-19 case count continues to grow at a significant pace in the central San Joaquin Valley, as Fresno and Tulare counties each added at least 50 new confirmed positive cases on Wednesday.
Stanislaus County reported Wednesday two more residents died of the coronavirus, bringing the county’s total to 17 deaths. The county reported that 461 residents have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday.
Both women had “underlying medical conditions,” the county Health Services Agency said in a news release. That was the case for all 15 of the other men and women who have died, including nine at Turlock Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
Tulare County’s Health and Human Services Agency reported 58 additional cases, and one more death, as of Wednesday morning. That increases the cumulative number of coronavirus infections to 916 since the global pandemic reached the county in March. That figure includes 41 deaths from complications related to the virus, and 150 patients considered recovered by health officials.
Fresno County added 53 more cases to its total since the first instances of the coronavirus were confirmed two months ago. Dr. Rais Vohra, Fresno County’s interim health officer, said the updated case count now stands at 777, including nine deaths and 263 recovered patients.
Madera and Mariposa counties each reported an additional case. Madera County tallies 55 total and Mariposa County 15.
The new case totals by Valley county are:
- Fresno County: 777 cases, 9 deaths, 253 recovered.
- Kings County: 233 cases, 1 death, 34 recovered.
- Madera County: 55 cases, 2 deaths, 35 recovered.
- Mariposa County: 15 cases, 0 deaths, 0 recovered.
- Merced County: 152 cases, 3 deaths, 86 recovered.
- Tulare County: 916 cases, 41 deaths, 150 recovered.
In California, as Wednesday there were 59,970 known COVID-19 cases and 2,445 deaths.
This story was originally published May 6, 2020 at 6:50 PM.
