Grim milestone: Merced County’s total COVID-19 deaths pass 200, as cases surge statewide
The COVID-19 pandemic has now led to the deaths of more than 200 Merced County residents, according to an update from the Merced County Department of Public Health on Wednesday.
Three more local fatalities were confirmed since Tuesday, tipping the death toll to 201 since the pandemic began. Sixteen of those lives have been lost in the last seven days.
Two of the deaths were women and one was a man, all at least age 65. Each of the individuals had underlying health conditions prior to contracting the virus, according to County Public Health.
New positive COVID-19 test results since Tuesday numbered 207 in Merced County. Daily infections have consistently counted upward of 100 cases since Nov. 29. This contrasts starkly with the positive case lull in September and October, when new infections often tallied fewer than 50 each day.
The new cases pushed the county’s total count since the pandemic’s start past the 13,000s to 14,058. The county was first reported by County Public Health to have reached the 13,000 threshold just over the weekend.
Cases considered active jumped to 2,521. Probable active cases have not counted so high since Aug. 18.
Active cases are an estimate based on the number of laboratory confirmed positive tests during the past to weeks.
Rising positive tests are also indicated by the county’s growing testing positivity percentage, which references the amount of positive tests compared to negative tests during the last seven days. The metric grew to 12.7% on Wednesday from 12.3% Tuesday.
The data point is one of several used by the state to organize counties into reopening tiers. Each time Merced County’s positive test percentage grows, that’s further distance to make back before more businesses can reopen by moving into the next tier.
No changes were made on Wednesday to the list of active COVID-19 outbreaks. Forty locations are currently listed. Facilities are removed from the list when no additional cases are traced back to the location for two weeks.
County remains under shelter-in-place order
As transmission of the novel coronavirus increases throughout California, higher cases also means more patients are requiring hospitalization.
Because of this, Merced County this week began more strict lockdown rules, in addition to already being grouped into the most limited business reopening tier. The regional stay-at-home orders are an effort by the state to protect an area’s hospitals from becoming overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients.
The new mandate was triggered when the 12-county San Joaquin Valley region, which includes Merced County, dropped below 15% intensive care unit availability.
The orders last at least three weeks from when they’re triggered. Until then, affected counties must cease in-person dining, close bars and wineries and shutter several other economic sectors.
As of Wednesday, other affected regions also include Southern California and the Greater Sacramento area. The three impacted regions total 77% of the state’s overall population. ICU availability in the Bay Area and Northern California regions are still higher than 15%.
The San Joaquin Valley has consistently ranked worst in terms of free ICUs, and continues to worsen. The region’s capacity lessened to 4.2% on Wednesday.
Merced County, however, is still faring better than the region overall. Nine of the county’s 24 total ICU beds were free as of Tuesday, according to the most recent state data.
But more and more Merced County residents are being hospitalized both in and outside of the county. Ten more patients are actively hospitalized since Tuesday, raising Wednesday’s total to 83. In-county hospitalizations account for 40 of those patients.
Pandemic-related hospitalizations increased by seven cases to 850 on Wednesday.
This story was originally published December 9, 2020 at 6:05 PM.
