Five new coronavirus cases reported in Merced County Tuesday, total rises to 34
Five new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Merced County Tuesday by the Department of Public Health, raising the total number of infected persons to 34.
The transmission source for the new coronavirus cases is under investigation by Public Health.
Three of the newly infected individuals live on the east side of the county, and two on the west, according to County Public Health. A total of 20 infected individuals live on the east side and 14 on the west.
The 34 Merced County residents with the respiratory disease are now evenly split by gender. Three of the newly infected individuals fall within age 18 to 49, and two are between age 50 to 64, according to Public Health.
County Public Health began reorganizing its coronavirus transmission categories Monday with the addition of a “healthcare exposure” category.
Healthcare exposure refers to a Merced County resident who acquired coronavirus in a healthcare setting, like a hospital or doctor’s office, either within or outside the county’s borders.
Three individuals were re-categorized into healthcare exposure Tuesday, making a total of four persons having contracted coronavirus in such a setting.
Merced County residents who acquired COVID-19 as a result of travel now tally eight, down from 10 Monday. The two-person decrease is a result of the individuals now being counted in the healthcare exposure category.
Persons contracting coronavirus through community spread also fell from nine to eight Tuesday on account of one individual being re-categorized into healthcare exposure.
Person-to-person transmission held steady at nine cases.
Person-to-person transmission means exposure is traced directly to another COVID-19 positive person. Community transmission means a person was exposed in the community, but is unaware of having encountered anyone with coronavirus.
Three individuals have recovered from the disease in Merced County so far.
Public Health reported the first COVID-19 related death in the county Sunday. The man had underlying health conditions died Sunday and was under age 65.
There are 16,309 active coronavirus cases and 387 deaths in California as of Tuesday.
Nationally, 392,594 have tested positive for the coronavirus, and 12,621 have died of complications related to it, according to The COVID Tracking Project.
Merced County Public Health issued a new Health Order Tuesday. It directs health care providers to report patients with febrile respiratory illness to Public Health, tells employers to screen employees for febrile respiratory illness and advises residents to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms and appropriately isolate if necessary.
The order also strongly encourages all residents to wear a cloth face covering in public spaces, in addition to maintaining at least 6 feet of social distancing.
Coronavirus throughout the Valley
Tulare County has reported 157 positive COVID-19 cases and six deaths. Tulare County saw an increase of 22 cases from Monday to Tuesday.
Of the positive cases, at least 44 have come from Redwood Springs Healthcare Center, a 176-bed nursing home in Visalia.
Kings County has tallied five cases and no deaths, according to health officials.
Stanislaus County reported Monday afternoon that 81 people have tested positive for the virus and 1,666 tested negative. Twenty-nine of the positive cases were hospitalized. Deaths remain at zero.
Madera County has not reported any new cases since Saturday. Two of the Valley‘s deaths, including the first, were in the county.
The number of Fresno County deaths related to coronavirus rose to three on Tuesday, and health officials reported another 22 positive cases. The county through Tuesday has confirmed 146 positive coronavirus cases, according to the Fresno County Department of Public Health.
Information on the third and latest person to die in the county was not immediately available.
Ninety-three of the cases were found in the city of Fresno, according to new information from health officials. The other clusters were found in Clovis (15), Firebaugh (12), Sanger (7) and Reedley (6). Ten other communities in Fresno County had four or fewer cases.
Merced County Resources
The county will host a Small Business Resources webinar April 16 from 3-4 p.m. It will cover resources currently available to small business owners and non-profit organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Details on how to access and register for the webinar will be included in coming updates, the county said.
Merced County and the City of Merced, Dignity Health and Rotary Community Corps Merced County are partnering to establish a collection and distribution system for those who want to make and donate face masks.
Drive-through drop-off is available at the Merced Senior Community Center at 755 W. 15 th St., Merced from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Masks will be distributed back to the communities they were donated from. More information can be found at www.rccmercedcounty.org.
The county website has a link for those in need of help or able to give help.
The public can report non-essential business activity and large group gatherings that violate the state-mandated stay-at-home order by calling (209) 381-1100 or emailing COVIDcomplaint@countyofmerced.com.
This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 6:17 PM.
