Coronavirus

Coronavirus update, Dec. 9: Stanislaus hospitals add 32 patients. Key ICU index slips

Latest facts on COVID-19 testing in Modesto area

Stanislaus County had a sharp increase Tuesday in hospital patients with COVID-19, and another setback in the crucial data on intensive-care beds.

Four more residents have died, for a total of 450 since the pandemic began, the county Health Services Agency said. Another 346 positive tests were reported.

Tuesday was the second full day of a stay-at-home order in the 12-county San Joaquin Valley Region. It was triggered when adult ICU capacity dropped below 15% of available beds. That figure was 5.6% on Tuesday, down from 6.3% on Monday.

Stanislaus County hospitals reported 247 confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, including non-ICU beds, up from 215 the day before. Only four ICU beds were free.

The county has 24,807 people who have tested positive, 243,955 who tested negative and 21,545 who are presumed recovered.

The county’s 14-day rolling positivity rate rose slightly to 14.95%, according to the California Department of Public Health. The seven-date rate was 16.97%.

The demographic breakdowns of the positive tests as of Tuesday:

  • 54% are female
  • 46% male
  • 8% are 14 years or younger
  • 16% are ages 15 to 24
  • 20% are 25 to 34,
  • 18% are 35 to 44,
  • 15% are 45 to 54
  • 12% are 55 to 64
  • 6% are 65 to 74
  • 3% are 75 to 84,
  • 2% are 85 or older.
  • Though they make up 47 percent of the population, Latinos represented 64 percent of the positive cases.

Geographically:

  • Modesto has 8,937 positive cases
  • Turlock has 3,734
  • Ceres has 2,723
  • Patterson has 1,225
  • Riverbank has 1,128
  • Oakdale has 672
  • Newman has 504
  • Waterford has 300
  • Hughson has 237
  • Supervisorial District 5 has 1,337
  • District 3 has 1,297
  • District 2 has 1,048
  • District 1 has 554
  • District 4 has 156

As of Tuesday evening, there were 1,422,187 confirmed cases in California and 20,275 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. There were 15,173,851 U.S. cases and 286,338 deaths.

Drive-thru flu vaccine clinics expand

Starting this week, Stanislaus County public health will host drive-thru flu vaccine clinics in Patterson and Ceres, and additional locations are slated in the coming weeks. All of the vaccines are free and available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Editorial: We know the stay-home drill

The current stay-home order will last a minimum of three weeks. If we refuse to follow proven safety protocols, the burdens borne by the sick, the dying and our businesses will extend beyond.

Area residents discuss need, impacts of lockdown

Stanislaus County residents talk about the need and devastating impacts of Gavin Newsom’s COVID lockdown after ICU bed availability falls to less than 15%.

How to help Stanislaus businesses survive holidays

Modesto and Stanislaus County restaurants and retailers suggest best ways to help them survive new COVID-19 pandemic stay-at-home lockdown order.

Modesto holiday parade as bright as ever

The annual Celebration of Lights parade took place on Saturday in Modesto. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the parade was a drive-thru.

What order means for business, other activities

As the San Joaquin Valley steams toward another shutdown due to the COVID-19 surge in Stanislaus County and the region, business and community members are bracing themselves for what comes next.

Murder suspect left prison early due to COVID-19

The Modesto man suspected in a fatal shooting on Monday should have been in prison but he’d been released six months early as a result of the state’s accelerated release program designed to slow the spread of COVID-19 within prisons, according to Sheriff Jeff Dirkse.

What Modesto neighborhood has highest rate of cases?

The Modesto ZIP code 95351 has the highest rate of coronavirus cases in Stanislaus County, showing how the pandemic affects low-income and Latino communities. One family tells a heartbreaking story.

From around the state, nation and world

Foster Farms reopened its facility on Cherry Street in Fresno on Monday morning following deep cleaning over the weekend to address a coronavirus outbreak, according to company officials.

A new survey found that the longer adults spent time lodged in their homes during coronavirus lockdowns in March, the more they consumed alcohol — with about a third of respondents admitting to binge drinking.

A nurse in Salem, Oregon is no longer employed at the hospital where she worked following backlash over a TikTok video in which she mocked COVID-19 precautions.

Follow More of Our Reporting on Coronavirus in California

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John Holland
The Modesto Bee
John Holland covers agriculture, transportation and general assignment news. He has been with The Modesto Bee since 2000 and previously worked at newspapers in Sonora and Visalia. He was born and raised in San Francisco and has a journalism degree from UC Berkeley.
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