Coronavirus update, Jan. 29: Stanislaus has another notable drop in hospital cases
Stanislaus County freed up 25 hospital beds for COVID-19 patients Thursday, a hopeful sign that the winter surge is easing.
Seven more deaths were reported by the county Health Services Agency, for a total of 815 since last spring. January has had 199 of the deaths, the worst month to date.
Thursday brought 266 new cases in the county, for a total of 45,264. Stanislaus also has 381,788 negative test results and 41,597 people who are presumed recovered from the virus.
The county’s five hospitals had 253 patients with confirmed COVID-19 on Thursday, down from 278 the previous day. The figure was well over 300 in early January. Eight intensive-care beds for adults were available, up from one.
A long-term projection of easing ICU capacity prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday to lift the stay-home order in the 12-county San Joaquin Valley Region. Stanislaus remains in the purple tier, the most restrictive for business and gatherings.
The county’s 14-day rolling positivity rate fell by more than a percentage point to 15.5% after a single-day rate of 9.9, its lowest in nine days and second lowest since Nov. 29.
The current 14-day rate is down 3.8% from the previous 14 days yet, just below the rate of decline seen at the state level. The state’s current 14-day rate is 8.8%.
Over the last seven days, Stanislaus County’s infection rate per 100,000 residents ranks 26th among the state’s 58 counties and rate of death is 20th, according to the Los Angeles Times COVID-19 tracker. Its overall death rate per 100,000 residents remains fourth in the state. Its infection rate per 100,000 residents is 17th.
As of Thursday, 41,200 doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been allocated to Stanislaus County. This includes 19,660 doses to health care providers and 21,540 to public health. The numbers do not include federal allocations to staff and residents at nursing care facilities and some provided directly to hospital systems.
Information regarding vaccinations in Stanislaus County is on the county dashboard at http://schsa.org/coronavirus/vaccine/.
California has administered 2,746,876 doses as of Thursday, up from 2,579,666 the day before, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracker. The state ranks 37th in the country, having administered 6,952 doses per 100,000 residents. Alaska ranks first, Alabama 50th among the states.
Here are the demographic breakdowns of the positive tests in Stanislaus County as of Thursday:
- 53.6% are female
- 46.4% male
- 7.9% are 14 years or younger
- 16.5% are ages 15 to 24
- 19.5% are 25 to 34
- 17.3% are 35 to 44
- 14.9% are 45 to 54
- 12% are 55 to 64
- 6.6% are 65 to 74
- 3.4% are 75 to 84
- 1.9% are 85 or older.
- Though they make up 47 percent of the population, Latinos represented 63.7 percent of the positive cases.
Geographically:
- Modesto has 16,594 positive cases
- Turlock has 6,037
- Ceres has 4,712
- Patterson has 2,260
- Riverbank has 2,044
- Oakdale has 1,412
- Newman has 1,029
- Waterford has 533
- Hughson has 482
- Supervisorial District 3 has 2,365
- District 5 has 2,184
- District 2 has 1,856
- District 1 has 1,049
- District 4 has 335
- San Joaquin County has 850 COVID-19-related deaths among 61,548 cases.
- Merced County has 349 deaths among 26,038 cases.
- Tuolumne County has 3,526 cases and 48 deaths.
- Mariposa County has 358 cases and five deaths.
As of Friday morning, there were 3,273,905 confirmed cases in California and 39,574 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. There were 25,768,826 U.S. cases and 433,213 deaths.
Stapley: Why we reported on rule-breaking eatery
Some people were surprised — and a little disturbed — to see a recent Modesto Bee “Business Beat” column featuring a new restaurant serving diners indoor and out, in clear violation of then-COVID public safety rules (as of Monday, it’s OK to dine outdoors).
County adds Patterson vaccine clinic
Stanislaus County’s fourth coronavirus vaccine clinic will open Friday in Patterson, bringing the two-step vaccine to the western portion of the county.
High school sports take key step
In a big step to allow all high school athletes to have a chance to play sports this school year, the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section voted 47-10 in a Board of Managers Meeting to allow each league to create its own sports schedule for the rest of the year.
Stanislaus is ‘not out in the clear’
Stanislaus County’s health officer said Tuesday the county continues to struggle with the coronavirus pandemic, even though the state lifted a regional stay-home order Monday.
Newsom lifts stay-home order
Stanislaus County and the rest of a 12-county San Joaquin Valley region are no longer under a regional stay-home order, meaning that COVID-19 restrictions are lifted for some businesses and activities.
Stimulus aids lower-income renters
Modesto and Stanislaus County are getting $16.4 million from the most recent federal stimulus to help lower-income renters struggling to pay their rent and utilities because of the new coronavirus pandemic.
Patterson students get help connecting
Magdalena Fernandez no longer worries whether her daughter can connect to the internet and join her online kindergarten class thanks to new equipment from Patterson Joint Unified School District.
Downtown eatery tries to buck pandemic
When one restaurant has already closed in the same space in part because of the ongoing pandemic, the decision to open another comes with many critical choices.
From around the state, nation and world
More Americans say they trust the federal government when it comes to the pandemic since President Joe Biden took office last week, a poll found.
A California schools chief who got a COVID-19 vaccine shot from leftover doses at an event for top-priority educators faces outcry from teachers who have yet to be vaccinated.
A house cat in central Arkansas tested positive for COVID-19, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture announced.
This story was originally published January 29, 2021 at 4:47 AM.
