Merced County reports 3 new COVID deaths, 116 cases, as local vaccination efforts continue
The Merced County Department of Health reported three new COVID-19 related deaths Friday, bringing the total deaths to 362 since the start of the pandemic.
Of the latest deaths, two were women and one was a man. One was between ages 35-49, while the others were age 65 or older.
On Friday 116 new confirmed COVID-19 cases were reported in Merced County, bringing the total number of cases to 27,134 residents who have been infected with the virus since the start of the pandemic.
There are currently 2,086 Merced County residents estimated to be actively infected — a drop of 393 cases since Monday.
The number of residents hospitalized in Merced County due to the virus is 41 — an increase of six cases since Thursday — with 19 people in the ICU.
According to the state, Merced County hospitals had 0 ICU beds remaining as of Thursday.
Merced County currently has a positivity rate of 10.4%, meaning the level of people among those who’ve been tested who had a positive result. That’s a decrease from 12% a week ago.
California hits 4 million doses given
California is about eight weeks into a mass vaccination campaign to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, administering tens of thousands of shots a day.
The California Department of Public Health on its vaccine tracker reported Friday that providers have administered 4,199,626 out of about 6.8 million doses that have been distributed to hospital systems and local health offices, a record-high daily increase of 214,874 doses given.
Friday became the first day to clear 200,000 shots added to the tally, though it’s unclear whether the total includes any backlog from previous days; California struggled with data reporting on doses administered, particularly in the first few weeks of the rollout. The state added about 192,000 shots from Wednesday to Thursday, the previous daily high.
The rollout to the central San Joaquin Valley has been slower than other regions, leading officials in Fresno and Merced to plead for more.
Super Bowl warnings
Health officials statewide this week have warned about the potential of super spreader events, due to people attending large Super Bowl LV parties.
The 55th annual game this year is seen as another risky time for families and friends to loiter and risk further spread of the deadly coronavirus similar to Christmas, Thanksgiving and Memorial Day.
All of those holidays were concerns for health officials and at least two of them were blamed for surges that kept intensive care unit beds full and doctors working long hours.
So once again, experts are asking people to stay home and watch the game without mixing households indoors, according to Rais Vohra, Fresno County’s interim health officer.
“It’s really all up to us so think about that during this holiday weekend,” he said on Friday. “Think about the choices we make — and the choices that were made weeks and months ago — lead to the consequences that all of us, including our children, have to live with.”
Merced College hosting vaccine clinic next week
Merced College is expected to host a COVID-19 vaccine clinic next week in a partnership with Dignity Health and UC Merced.
About 2,500 Pfizer vaccines will be distributed at Merced College’s gym for people who qualify, including workers in the state’s first COVID-19 tier and those 65 or older.
To sign up to be notified when appointments are available, go to vaccinatemercedcounty.com/registration. For help, call the county at 209-381-1180.
The clinic at Merced College is expected to begin administering the COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, according to Merced County Supervisor Daron McDaniel.
The vaccination clinic will be open from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday and 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, according to a press release from Merced College.
Individuals must be registered online or by phone to reserve an appointment — there will be no walk-up appointments.
Around the Valley
Fresno County has seen 90,126 cases of the virus and 1,224 deaths since the pandemic began in March. Those numbers represent an increase on Friday of 378 cases, but no deaths, from the previous day.
Stanislaus County reported four new deaths on Friday, bringing the total to 857 deaths since the start of the pandemic. There were 200 new cases reported, which raises the total to 47,176 total cases.
Tulare County reported 13 new fatal cases on Friday, which brings the total to 645 deaths since the pandemic began. Another 187 positive cases added Friday brought that total to 45,834.
Madera County did not report any new deaths, leaving the total at 184. Fifty-one new cases pushed the total to 14,638.
Mariposa County has seen 374 cases and five deaths. There were no changes reported Friday.
The Fresno Bee and Sacramento Bee contributed to this story.
This story was originally published February 5, 2021 at 6:06 PM.
