Two more deaths in county due to coronavirus

Newsom announces aid for illegal immigrants

The Tulare County Health and Human Services Department reported two more deaths on Thursday due to COVID-19, bringing the total of people who have died from the coronavirus in the county to 17.

As of noon Thursday, the department didn’t provide any further information on the two deaths reported on Thursday.

The department reported there are 372 positive cases of the coronavirus in the county, an increase of 20 over the 352 that were reported on Wednesday.

The numbers the department reported for Porterville and Lindsay on Thursday remained virtually unchanged from Wednesday. The department reported there are 39 positive cases of the coronavirus in Lindsay and 22 in Porterville.

As of Tuesday, Sierra View Medical Center reported it had 15 patients test positive for COVID-19.

Sierra View continued to reported it has four inpatients who are being treated for the coronavirus. The hospital has also reported it has had two deaths as a result of COVID-19.

Sierra View reported it has had 169 tests for the coronavirus conducted with 154 of the tests being negative.

Tulare County Health and Human Services reported on Thursday there were 226 positive cases of coronavirus in Visalia, 43 in Tulare, 37 in the Dinuba, Kingsburg and Woodlake areas and three in Pixley.

Twenty-five of the cases have been reported as travelers, 249 have been reported as person-to-person contact and 98 are still under investigation.

The department reported 22 people in the county who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered. The depart

ment also reported 454 people in the county are under self-quarantine and being monitored by public health officials.

The fact that the number of cases increased by 20 in the county from Wednesday to Thursday is an encouraging sign after the county suffered a setback going from Tuesday to Wednesday when the number of cases jumped by 56 from 296 to 352.

That significantly reduced the doubling time — the amount of days it takes for cases to double — in the county from 8.3 days to 4.9 days. Covidcounties.org reported the county’s doubling rate had increased from 6.6 to 8.3 days.

The longer it takes for a county’s cases to double means the curve in which cases are happening is flattening more.

It appears, though, while the county remains behind the rest of the state when it comes to flattening its curve, it’s still following the same pattern as the rest of the state.

Los Angeles County’s doubling rate significantly increased by 10 days on Wednesday to 23.3 days. Los Angeles County’s number of cases has now exceeded more than 1 per 1,000. As of Wednesday, L.A. County reported 10,495 cases and 402 deaths.

Tulare County now has close to 80 cases per 100,000, which has exceeded the state average which as of Wednesday was about 69 per 100,000. The state’s double rate is 22.8 days as of Wednesday. As of Wednesday the state reported 27,074 cases and 885 deaths.

Based on the fact there were 20 new cases on Thursday, Tulare County’s doubling rate should significantly increase.

As of Wednesday, Fresno County reported 265 cases — or about 27 per 100,000, and a doubling rate of 7.5 days.

There are still hot spots in the state such as Imperial County, which had the state’s fastest doubling rate as of Wednesday at three days.

SBA RUNS OUT OF MONEY

The Small Business Administration stated it reached its limit of $349 billion on Thursday after approving 1.7 million loans.

Small businesses who haven’t had there loans processed must now wait as lawmaker are negotiating the Trump Administration’s request for another $250 billion for the program.

Democrats are seeking to add funding for hospitals and state and local governments and also provisions that help minority businesses. It’s likely the SBA won’t receive the additional funding until next week at the earliest.

PAID SICK LEAVE FOR FOOD WORKERS

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Thursday he signed an executive order that will provide two weeks of paid leave for essential workers in the food industry.

Newsom said the order covers food service employees who have been impacted by the coronavirus, including farmers, packers, deliverers, grocers, cooks, and servers.

Workers who have tested positive for COVID-19, or been exposed to the virus or told they must self-quarantine or isolate because of it, will be able to receive two weeks of paid sick leave.

AID FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Thursday immigrants living illegally in the state who have been impacted by COVID-19 will receive $500 each. An estimated 150,000 adults will receive cash payments.

Newsom said $75 million of taxpayer money will be used to create a Disaster Relief Fund for illega immigrants in the state. Another $50 million through philanthropy will be provided in matching funds for a total of $125 million, Newsom said.

“We feel a deep sense of gratitude for people that are in fear of deportations that are still addressing essential needs of tens of millions of Californians,” said Newsom, who noted 10 percent of the state’s workforce are immigrants living in the country illegally who paid more than $2.5 billion in state and local taxes last year.