227 positive cases in Tulare County

Sierra View receives more than 2,000 masks

As of Saturday, Tulare County Health and Human Services reported there were 227 positive cases of COVID-19 in the county.

That was an increase of 24 cases over Friday in which 203 cases were reported. The county didn’t report any deaths on Saturday. Eleven people in the county have died due to the coronavirus.

Twenty-six of the cases have been reported as travelers, 141 have been reported as person-to-person contact and 60 are still under investigation.

Twelve are ages 0-17, 21 are ages 1825, 55 are ages 26-40, 63 are ages 41-64 and 76 are ages 65 and older.

There are 389 people in the county who are under self-quarantine and being monitored by public health officials. The county has reported 11 people in the county who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered.

The county reported there were 18 cases in Porterville and 17 cases in Lindsay. There are 134 cases in Visalia, 32 cases in Tulare, 24 cases in the Dinuba, Kingsburg and Woodlake areas and two cases in Pixley.

As of Friday, Sierra View Medical Center reported it had 10 positive cases of the coronavirus. Sierra View reported it four inpatient cases and two deaths as a result of COVID-19.

Sierra View reported there have been 148 at the hospital who have been tested with 116 of the tests negative and 22 still pending. The hospital reported 1,215 people in the county have been tested. Sierra View receives more than 2,000 masks

Sierra View reported it has received more than 2,000 masks, but is still in need of more masks.

“Thank you to all who have been hard at work making face coverings!” the hospital stated.

The hospital stated because not all

its medical professionals are the same size, face coverings using the pattern suggested by the hospital are a little too small for a few healthcare workers.

The hospital asks those who are making masks to make a few that are an extra two inches in length and have slightly longer elastic bands as well. The hospital is also asking that some patters be gender-neutral if possible.

For complete instructions and delivery information, visit sierra-view. com/facecoverings.

“Thank you again for contributing your efforts. We are all in this together!” the hospital stated.

Stimulus checks

The first stimulus checks from the $2.2 trillion stimulus package were sent out on Friday. The U.S. Treasury Department has stated as many as 70 million Americans could receive stimulus checks by April 15 which ironically was the deadline to file federal income taxes. But that deadline has been extended to July 15.

The Internal Revenue Service is sending $1,200 to Americans who make less than $75,000 a year plus $500 for each child. Those making more than $75,000 a year will receive less.

Married couples making less than $150,000 will receive $2,400 plus $500 a child.

For those who didn’t file taxes, the IRS has set up a portal to set up a direct deposit to receive their money. The IRS also soon plans a way for people to check the status of their stimulus check online.

Those who haven’t provided direct deposit information to the IRS could wait weeks or months for a check to be mailed out.

It could take until August or September for all checks to be printed and mailed.

Unemployment benefits

Those who have been receiving unemployment benefits were scheduled to receive an additional $600 on top of their weekly amount, beginning on Sunday. That announcement was made by Governor Gavin Newsom.

The compensation is part of the Pandemic Additional Compensation Package included in the CARES Act.

In the last four weeks, the state has processed 2.3 million unemployment insurance claims which is more than all of 2019.

Information on unemployment benefits is available at edd.ca.gov