COVID-19 numbers ‘trending down’ in Solano County

County Public Health educator Shai Davis says, 'One big reason is the vaccinations'

Solano County Public Health officials on Tuesday reported 249 active COVID-19 cases, 16 people hospitalized with the potentially deadly respiratory disease, a sevenday positivity rate of 7 percent and, to date, 216 deaths.

The numbers are largely trending downward and have been since the vaccination rollout began in earnest in March, said Shai Davis, an educator with the Fairfield-based department.

“One big reason is the vaccinations,” she said, adding that widespread vaccinations of the most vulnerable age group, 65 and older,

has led to fewer cases and hospitalizations, reflective of the nationwide trend.

Updated weekdays at 6 p.m., the Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard indicated on Tuesday 32,880 total confirmed cases to date.

Additionally, the dashboard clearly shows the daily number of cases on a sevenday moving average reaching a high of more than 500 at the turn of the new year and falling to 15 on May 8.

The total number of “unduplicated” county residents tested since the local outbreak began in February last year is 206,448. (Davis noted that the first nationwide case of “community transmission,” meaning the spread could not be traced back to a source, was confirmed on Feb. 26, 2020, and affected a Vacaville resident.)

The total number of COVID-19 tests was 315,209 so far on Tuesday, and the sevenday percentage of positivity, which reached a high of nearly 40 percent at the turn of the year, was 7 percent.

Confirming the number of hospitalizations reached 16 on Tuesday, the rate, although fluctuating, is “trending down,” said Davis, adding that on Jan. 7 some 180 Solano residents were hospitalized.

“Hopefully, the numbers will continue to go down,” she said.

The signs appear to be positive, if the dashboard figures are an indication: Across the county, 48 percent of intensive care beds are available; and some 80 ventilators are available.