Declining count moves county closer to less restrictive tier

COVID-19 data released Tuesday by the California Department of Public Health show another week of declines in new cases and the test positivity rate in Los Angeles County.

Since last week, the county’s seven-day average test positivity rate has dropped from 2% to 1.8%. Based on results from the week ending March 13, the

seven-day average case rate dropped from 4.1 to 3.7 per 100,000 people.

According to a Los Angeles County Department of Public Health statement Tuesday, the county may be eligible to move to the less restrictive orange tier as soon as early April due to these declining numbers.

L.A. County is currently in its second week of being in the red tier. The state of California requires counties to stay in the red tier for at least three weeks before advancing to the less restrictive orange tier.

Counties must also meet the next tier’s criteria for two consecutive weeks before becoming eligible to move to the less restrictive tier.

County public health officials released the following updated COVID-19 statistics Tuesday:

Countywide COVID-19 cases reported in the past 24 hours: 490

Total COVID-19 cases in L.A. County: 1,215,129

New deaths related to COVID-19 reported in the past 24 hours: 66

Total COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County: 22,871

Hospitalizations countywide: 713, 25% of whom are in the ICU

Hospitalizations at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital as of March 19: 8, with 1,176 discharged since the onset of the pandemic

COVID-19 cases reported in the Santa Clarita Valley in the past 24 hours: 17

Total COVID-19 cases in the SCV: 26,959

Total COVID-19 deaths in the SCV: 286

The number of SCV cases, including all area health care providers’ daily figures and those at Pitchess Detention Center, broken down into region, are as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 19,783

Unincorporated — Acton: 459

Unincorporated — Agua Dulce: 265

Unincorporated — Bouquet Canyon: 47

Unincorporated — Canyon Country: 814

Unincorporated — Castaic: 3,664 (majority of Castaic cases come from Pitchess Detention Center; exact number unavailable)

Unincorporated — Lake Hughes: 41

Unincorporated — Newhall: 67

Unincorporated — Placerita Canyon: 1

Unincorporated — San Francisquito Canyon/Bouquet Canyon: 15

Unincorporated — Sand Canyon: 17

Unincorporated — Saugus: 132

Unincorporated — Saugus/ Canyon Country: 39

Unincorporated — Stevenson Ranch: 1,103

Unincorporated — Val Verde: 327

Unincorporated — Valencia: 185