By 
Spencer Custodio And Noah Biesiada |
As Orange County continues to reopen, it is possible that residents will be able to detect the outbreak of the virus in specific locations, continuing the trend that led to the outbreak by the county’s health care agency.
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During this week’s press update, Orange County Health Officer Dr. Clayton Chow said he understood the arguments for further disclosure, but would have to talk to county lawyers before declaring an epidemic.
“I also need to communicate with the county council and we will do everything we can to be transparent,” Chow told a news conference on Thursday.
He also said that “whatever is appropriate in the proposed law and valid rules of outbreak.”
Last week, county health care agency officials said an epidemic had broken out in a college.
“One college had 3 or more cases over a 2-week period,” said Dr. David Nunez, medical director of the county health care agency.
Agency officials are still silent on whether to name the college.
“Internal discussions are in process and we have not reached a decision at this time,” agency spokesman Ed Mertz said in an email last Friday.
The agency has not yet named the college.
Meanwhile, California State University, Fullerton’s student newspaper, the Daily Titan, reported Wednesday University officials confirmed a virus outbreak on campus.
The student paper states that at least four known cases have been found in the new semester.
By comparison, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health List all outbreaks, with only 380 outbreaks.
Chow said Thursday that county public health officials rely on colleges and universities to self-report their outbreaks.
State health officials define an outbreak of three or more confirmed cases in one place over a two-week period.
If county public health officials declare the outbreak, Chow said it would have to affect the community before officials release the information.
“Only if it affects the community at large. If a large spread does not affect the community, we will not be able to do so. ”
Since the outbreak began in March, the virus has killed 1,115 OC residents, including four new deaths reported on Thursday. County Health Care Agency.
In that regard, Orange Range County has had an average of 20,000 deaths a year since 2016 State health information. According to the same statistics, the flu kills about 543 OC residents annually.
The number of hospital admissions is still around 200, with more than 100 people admitted to the hospital at one stage following the July spike in cases.
Numerous public health experts interviewed by the public ISOF OC attributed the sudden resurgence of the industry, which began at Memorial Day weekend, to see restaurants reopen, not long after bars.
As of Thursday, 198 people had been hospitalized, including 64 in intensive care units.
More than 765,000 tests have been performed across OCs, with approximately 3.2 million people living there.
Although some primary and high schools are set to reopen next week, questions remain about how positive tests for the virus will be reported in schools.
Chow confirmed that the county would post which schools were closed due to the cove, but did not comment on whether schools that were open with limited cases would also be listed.
In the Los Angeles Unified School District, which manages 600,000 students, district officials have confirmed that students will only be able to go to the classroom with a negative test. Those who refuse will be forced to stay online.
They have also announced a new website that will allow parents to see which schools and in which classrooms the case has been confirmed.
After the government signed two bills into law by Gavin News on Thursday, now workers across the state will have easier access to health care and wage replacement if they test positive for the virus.
One of the laws also requires employers to report an outbreak to local public health departments.
“The protection of workers is important to slow the spread of the virus,” News said in a statement from its press office. “Both of these laws will help California workers stay safe at work and get the support they need if they come into contact with COVID-19.”
In a news conference Thursday, Chou said the school outbreak would be the same as how other outbreaks would be reported, if they decide to start releasing that information.
“It will only be made public if the information is made public. If the information does not affect the transmission of the disease among the people, then the public does not need to know, ”Chou said.
However, Chow said school districts would have to report the outbreak to parents.
“The school district is responsible for notifying parents at the school, there should be a positive test of a student or employee.”
Here is the latest information on virus numbers in Orange Range County from County Data.
Spencer Custodio is a Voice of America OC staff reporter. You can reach out to him [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter PSpencerCustodio
Noah BCADA is a VOSOF Reporting Fellow. Contact her at [email protected] or on Twitter @NBiesiada.
