Coronavirus reported at Merced County child care center. Free tests expand for residents
Two additional Merced County residents have died after contracting the novel coronavirus, the Merced County Department of Public Health confirmed on Monday.
Total deaths since the pandemic’s beginning were raised to 129 with the new fatalities.
One of the most recently deceased residents was female and the other male. Both were age 65 or older and had underlying health conditions prior to their deaths, according to County Public Health.
Monday also brought with it the confirmation of an additional COVID-19 outbreak at Hilmar Christian Children’s Center, a day care. The new facility outbreak raised active outbreaks in the county to 19.
At most locations, active outbreaks are defined as three or more laboratory confirmed positive cases linked to a workplace within two weeks. Just one positive case constitutes an outbreak at a skilled nursing facility, on account of the high-risk setting.
Outbreaks are closed and removed from the list after there are no new known infections for 14 days.
Free testing expands
Merced County residents can be tested for COVID-19 at mobile testing sites throughout the county this month, free of charge, according to a Monday County Public Health news release.
The increased capacity raises tests to an additional 500 daily. A full calendar of times and locations is listed below.
“The department wants to ensure that all residents in Merced County have access to COVID-19 testing,” said County Public Health Officer Dr. Salvador Sandoval. “We have increased our testing capacity to expand our reach and eliminate barriers to testing, such as accessibility.
“We hope that more individuals will receive testing to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and subsequently facilitate the reopening and recovery of our County.”
Residents are encouraged by Merced County Public Health Officials to secure a test if they experience any COVID-19-related symptoms, or may have been exposed to an individual who tested positive.
Individuals can register in advance for an appointment at www.doineedacovid19test.com. Walk-ins are also welcomed. For more information, call (209) 381-1180 or visit the Merced County website’s COVID-19 page.
More on local COVID-19 data drops
Since Friday, 75 new COVID-19 infections have been laboratory confirmed in Merced County, according to County Public Health.
Positive cases through the weekend numbered 21 on Saturday, 38 on Sunday and 16 on Monday.
Monday’s tally marked the lowest daily case count since June 27, when 12 new infections were laboratory confirmed.
The county’s overall caseload numbers 8,616 as of Monday, with 641 individuals presumed to be actively sick. That’s a decrease of nearly 90 active cases since Friday.
The active case count is an estimate based on the tally of positive known COVID-19 cases within the last two weeks.
The average percentage of residents screened for coronavirus during the past week who test positive dropped to the lowest point since cases spiked in recent months to 5.3% on Monday.
In order to reopen more of the local economy, the county must remain below 8% for 14 straight days.
Merced County has stayed below the crucial threshold for about a week, according to County Public Health data.
However, the county still exceeds the state-mandated benchmark of less than seven positive cases per 1000,000 residents, the most recent state data showed on Monday.
Of the 50,653 total COVID-19 tests conducted on Merced County residents, 17.1% have returned positive.
While the total number of residents hospitalized due to COVID-19 since the pandemic’s start increased by eight since Friday, active hospitalizations decreased by six.
Just 11 residents are being cared for within the county, while the remaining majority is looked after at outside facilities.
This story was originally published September 14, 2020 at 5:55 PM.
