Merced County COVID-19 deaths this week rise to 18, as state data issue complicates pandemic
Nine additional COVID-19 deaths of Merced County residents were reported by County Public Health on Wednesday, bringing the fatality count since the pandemic began to 60.
Seven of the deceased residents were female and two were male. Six were age 65 or older, two were between 50-64-years-old and one was between age 35-49. Seven of the deceased had underlying health conditions prior to their deaths and two did not.
Eighteen Merced County residents have been reported dead due to COVID-19 since Monday.
While the new fatalities represent a significant increase, the county’s total death count has not risen proportionally. This is because several deaths previously reported by County Public Health on Friday as COVID-19-related were later reclassified as unrelated to the pandemic.
The Merced County Department of Public Health reclassified four of Friday’s 11 reported deaths on Monday, and an additional four on Tuesday.
It is unclear how the fatalities were incorrectly categorized as cases of the novel coronavirus. The 11 deaths reported Friday came after a data lag from an out-of-county hospital where Merced County residents died, but it is unknown whether this contributed to the mix up.
Statewide data issue continues to complicate COVID-19
The county’s total caseload on Wednesday grew by 177 additional COVID-19 infections, raising the tally to 4,760. Residents assumed to be actively sick numbered 1,766.
But this data too must be looked at skeptically.
The statewide electronic disease reporting system CalREDIE has experienced serious and unresolved processing delays for multiple days now. Locally and throughout counties across California, new reported cases are likely an under count of the of true number of new laboratory confirmed COVID-19 infections.
The data problem, at least temporarily, warps other important statistics looked at by the state, like case rates per capita and testing positivity percentages.
Merced County’s testing positivity remained at 20% Tuesday and Wednesday, which is lower than previous days. The percentage reflects the number of residents screened for COVID-19 over the last week who tested positive. The state set its ideal maximum for counties at 8%.
Merced and 37 other counties statewide have been placed on a watch list due to their local coronavirus statistics failing to meet state benchmarks. Statistics are looked at during at least a 7-14 day average.
Deaths and hospitalizations related to COVID-19 do not appear to be affected by the issue. Merced County residents currently hospitalized due to severe coronavirus cases fell by three Wednesday to 79.
The California Department of Public Health acknowledged the data issue Tuesday morning after some counties had already noted the problem earlier in the week. State health officials say the glitch may be on account of the pandemic’s high data volume straining the state’s reporting system.
While the scope of the problem is not yet known, counties like Merced reported notably lower daily coronavirus counts throughout the weekend.
As the information lag is fixed, an incoming influx of backlogged cases or corrections to previous days’ numbers is expected, according to state health officials. It is unclear when the issue will be resolved.
This story was originally published August 5, 2020 at 5:33 PM.
