A resident of Humboldt County in his 60s died with COVID-19, marking the 31st virus-related death in Humboldt County. The staff at the Center for Public Health and Emergency Operations shares their condolences with the individual’s friends, family and caregivers.
Health officials advise that regular screening for COVID-19 remains a crucial tool for reducing spread in the community. There are two types of tests used to determine whether someone is infected with COVID-19 – a diagnosis, or polymerase chain reaction (PCR), a test that requires laboratory processing and an antigen test that provides results in 15 minutes. Antigen tests are more reliable when used for people who have symptoms. Public Health has recently started distributing thousands of rapid antigen tests to local health care providers to help them quickly determine whether someone has contracted the virus, and sufficient results have been returned to report the data.
Twenty-two new cases have been reported today, 10 using a PCR test and 12 based on antigen testing. A previously registered case was removed due to a lab report problem, so a total of 2,836 county residents tested positive for the virus.
From today and from now on, the results of the antigen test will be reported every day of the week. The positive results from both types of tests will be combined and included in the daily and cumulative case counts. The results of the antigen test were also incorporated into two metrics in the Humboldt County Data Panel (humboldtgov.org/dashboard) – the daily confirmed case count and the cumulative confirmed case count, which is subdivided by test type. All other information on the panel reflects only PCR testing, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
This week, vaccine clinics based on public health support providers
Several invite-only COVID-19 vaccination clinics are planned from Wednesday to Sunday for approximately 1,450 face-to-face educators, school support staff working in person, people aged 75 and over, health professionals and emergency service workers. Public Health is supporting these clinics in coordination with the St. Joseph Health Medical Group, the Southern Trinity Health Services and the Mad River Community Hospital. In addition, local providers who are approved vaccinators are contacting their patients aged 75 and over directly to schedule appointments.
Appointments for the first doses will decrease during February, as thousands of county residents are about to receive the second dose, while vaccine supply remains limited across the state and country. Public health officials will work closely with partners and providers to ensure that second doses are administered within 42 days after the first, which is the deadline recommended by the CDC.
Today, the California Department of Public Health announced that Humboldt County remains at the “Purple” level or generalized in the state’s “Safer Economy Plan”, with an adjusted case rate of 22.7 and a positivity rate 7.4%. To read more about the purple layer requirements, go to cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/COVID-19/Dimmer-Framework-September_2020.pdf.
For the latest information on COVID-19, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or during business hours, by contacting [email protected] or by calling 707-441-5000.
Information on the COVID-19 vaccine site: humboldtgov.org/vaccineinfo
Humboldt County COVID-19 data panel: humboldtgov.org/dashboard
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Twitter: @ HumCoCOVID19
Humboldt Health Alert: humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert
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The Humboldt County data panel now divides confirmed cases by type of test. Screenshot of the panel made on February 2, 2021.