County officials provide updates, and answer questions regarding the COVID-19 pandemic for April 27, 2020.

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 29 new deaths and 900 new cases of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Twenty-five people who died were over the age of 65 years old and three people who died were between the ages of 41 to 65 years old. Nineteen people had underlying health conditions including 18 people over the age of 65 years old and one person between the ages of 41 to 65 years old. One death was reported by the City of Pasadena.

To date, Public Health has identified 20,417 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County, and a total of 942 deaths. Ninety-two percent of people who died had underlying health conditions. Of those who died, information about race and ethnicity is available for 865 people (98 percent of the cases); 37% of deaths occurred among Latinx residents, 28% among White residents, 18% among Asian residents, 14% among African American residents, 1% among Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander residents and 1% among residents identifying with other races. African Americans, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and people living in communities with high levels of poverty continue to have the highest rate of death per 100,000 people for COVID-19 when compared to other groups. Upon further investigation, 11 cases reported earlier were not LA County residents. As of today, 4,403 people who tested positive for COVID-19 (23% of positive cases) have been hospitalized at some point during their illness. Testing capacity continues to increase in LA County, with testing results available for almost 124,000 individuals and 14% of people testing positive. Public Health will launch an interactive dashboard that will provide an overview on COVID-19 testing, cases and deaths along with maps and graphs showing testing, cases and death data by community poverty level, age, sex and race/ethnicity.

Given the essential role of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, Public Health is tracking their numbers of positive cases and deaths. Public Health has confirmed 11 people who died from COVID-19 worked in a healthcare setting and eight of the people who died worked in skilled nursing facilities. One thousand nine hundred and sixty-eight confirmed cases of COVID-19 occurred among healthcare workers and first responders and about 8% of these cases have been hospitalized. Forty-three percent of cases are among nurses, 5% are among physicians and 5% are among caregivers, receptionists, patient services, medical assistants, first responders and people working in administration. About 52% of these cases do not know or did not report how they were exposed. However, 40% of healthcare workers reported that they were exposed to COVID-19 in a healthcare facility. Healthcare workers who are positive worked at 24 different settings across the County; 35% worked in hospitals and 35% worked in skilled nursing.

“The increases in deaths represent our family members, friends and neighbors including front-line essential workers, who have passed away from COVID-19. To all who are grieving, you are in our thoughts and prayers, and we are so sorry for your loss,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “Healthcare workers are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, and they put themselves at risk everyday so that we all can receive excellent care. We owe them a debt of gratitude and the protection and equipment they need to do their jobs safely. They are our heroes. ”

Public Health reminds everyone that if you are ill, even with mild symptoms, please self- isolate at home for 7 days and until you are fever and symptom free for 72 hours. If you have been in close contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19 or is presumed to be infected with COVID-19, you must quarantine for 14 days from your last contact with that individual. Individuals who are elderly or who have underlying health conditions may be at higher risk of serious illness and should contact their doctor as soon as they are sick. The best protection against COVID-19 is to wash your hands frequently, avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, self-isolate if you are sick, practice physical distancing (especially by staying at home) and wear a clean face covering when in contact with others from outside your household.

Additional things you can do to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.publichealth.lacounty.gov .