The Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 45 new deaths and 2,642 new cases of COVID-19.

The number of new cases reported today are not known to include many backlog numbers from the state’s electronic lab report system (ELR), if any. They do, however, include delayed reporting of a few hundred cases from yesterday. A backlog of cases from the state is still expected. Data sources that track other key indicators, including hospitalizations and deaths, are not affected by this reporting issue.

There are 1,415 confirmed cases currently hospitalized and 33% of these people are confirmed cases in the ICU. Today, the seven-day average of daily hospitalizations is 1,521 patients. Two weeks ago, on July 31, daily hospitalizations averaged 2,026 patients. There has been a 25% reduction in the number daily hospitalized patients in just two weeks.

To date, Public Health has identified 218,693 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County, and a total of 5,214 deaths, which equals about 2.4%.

Testing results are available for nearly 2,037,000 individuals with 10% of all people testing positive.

Of the 45 new deaths reported today, 21 people who passed away (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena) were over the age of 80, 12 people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, nine people who died were between the ages of 50 and 64, and two people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49. Thirty-three people had underlying health conditions including 19 people over the age of 80, nine people between the ages of 65 and 79 and five people between the ages of 50 and 64. One death was reported by the City of Long Beach.

Ninety-two percent of the people who died from COVID-19 had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 4,904 people (99% of the cases reported by Public Health). Upon further investigation, 88 cases and two deaths reported earlier were not LA County residents.

The City of Glendale reported 2,715 cases, La Cañada Flintridge reports 139 cases, Sunland reports 369 cases, Tujunga reports 341 cases, and the unincorporated portion of La Crescenta/Montrose reports 134 cases.

“Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the thousands of people in LA County who tragically lost their life to COVID-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, director of Public Health. “The lower number of daily COVID-19 hospitalizations is encouraging, however we still have far too many people spreading this virus. Every day, a team of public health specialists investigate clusters of cases associated with parties, dinner events and gatherings. None of these activities are essential and all can lead to growing number of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths. We save lives and slow the spread of COVID-19 when we commit to doing what we know works – avoid gathering with people who you don’t live with, wear a face covering, maintain physical distance and wash hands often. Only when we get to low community transmission rates can we reopen our schools and get more people back to work. The choice is ours to make – our recovery journey continues only if we all do our part today to slow the spread.”

Business owners and business operators also need to take the necessary steps that protect workers and customers and adherence to infection control and distancing directives. In addition to following infection control directives, businesses need to immediately alert Public Health when there are three or more cases at a worksite. Directives and checklists for all businesses to follow are posted at: publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/

Reports of non-compliance and dangerous conditions at businesses can be reported by phone at (888) 700-9995 or online. These tips can be submitted anonymously.

The State ELR problems have resulted in under counting, affecting the number of COVID-19 cases reported each day and our contact tracing efforts. Given the ELR delays, the department urges any person with a positive lab result to call (833) 540-0473 to connect with a public health specialist who can provide information about services and support. Residents who do not have COVID-19 should continue to call 211 for resources or more information.

The Reopening Protocols, COVID-19 Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Roadmap to Recovery, Recovery Dashboard, and additional things you can do to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.