17 New Covid-19 Cases In Tuolumne County

Tuolumne County Public Health

Sonora, CA – Tuolumne County Public Health officials released the Monday Coronavirus testing update. There have been a total of 17 cases identified since Friday. Information about the new cases at the Tuolumne County jail are detailed here. Eight of the cases were identified Saturday, four Sunday, and five today, Monday, July 20.

Of the 17 new cases, 11 are isolating at home, 2 are in isolation at the county jail, 2 have completed their isolation period, and 2 are hospitalized. An additional case that had been in isolation is also now hospitalized but three individuals have been moved from isolation to recovered for a total of five recoveries since Friday. One individual has been reassigned to their county of residence.

Tuolumne residents tested 7,302*, positive 101, hospitalized 5, active cases 31, total recovered 70. Tuolumne’s “Active Cases” includes all positive cases that are under investigation, in isolation, or hospitalized.

The Public Health Department notes the vast majority of the cases are not connected to previous cases, and the source of infection is often unknown. They say “As a reminder, Tuolumne County is experiencing community transmission, which means that we may not be able to identify where a person acquired the virus, and we may not be able to identify all contacts.” Tuolumne residents who think they may have been exposed to a positive case, please call Public Health’s call center at 533-7440. People should be vigilant about taking preventive measures to protect themselves in all situations. Stay six feet apart. Wear a face covering. Wash your hands. More details below.

**Active cases as reported by the county or recovered and deceased known positive cases minus total known cases or for Merced, Mono and San Joaquin Counties a rolling 14-day total.

* Tuolumne County testing numbers include those routed through Public Health to a Public Health Laboratory and those reported through the State infectious disease reporting system. All positive cases of Tuolumne County residents must be reported to Public Health. State data is here.

Tuolumne County Public Health Updates

• The no-cost state testing site is open at the Calaveras County Fairgrounds Tuesday – Saturday 7am to 7pm. Appointments can be scheduled ahead of time at: https://lhi.care/covidtesting Appointments are strongly recommended as walk-ins are extremely limited.
• Wondering about face shields? People who are exempted from wearing a face covering due to a medical condition, who are employed in a job involving regular contact with others should wear a non-restrictive alternative, such as a face shield with a drape on the bottom edge, as long as their condition permits it. Here’s what that looks like. Using a face shield without an apron or using a smaller, partial shield is inadequate as it still allows for droplets to escape from the wearer.
  They should only be worn by those who meet the state medical exemption and the CDC does not recommend use of face shields for normal everyday activities or as a substitute for cloth face coverings. A link to the state face covering document is here. More helpful info about cloth face coverings: https://covid19.ca.gov/masks-and-ppe/
• In regard to antibody testing, Public Health cannot speak to the accuracy of the tests being offered by commercial laboratories and we are not currently making a recommendation for the testing. Individuals should contact their healthcare provider to determine if testing is recommended. It is important to note that the relationship between antibody presence and immunity is not currently known. This means that if a person tests positive for antibodies, it does not necessarily mean that the person is immune to COVID-19. It is unknown if people who test positive for COVID-19 antibodies are at risk of infection. Also, antibody tests have not been shown to definitively diagnose or exclude SARS-CoV-2 infection.

It is important that people continue to follow prevention guidelines to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, including:

• Practice physical distancing at all times. Keep 6 feet space between yourself and others who are not part of your household. Stay in your household bubble!
• Wear a face covering in public.
• Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently.
• Avoid gatherings of any size with people who are not part of your household.
• Stay home if you are sick.
• Avoid unnecessary travel, and limit your outings to essential tasks.

LINKS TO MORE INFORMATION & RESOURCES

Community Resources Portal: https://bit.ly/TCcovidPortal

Tuolumne County Public Health Website: www.tuolumnecounty.ca.gov/publichealth

Public Health COVID-19 Call Center: (209) 533-7440

California COVID-19 website: www.covid19.ca.gov

State Testing Site info and Appointments: https://lhi.care/covidtesting

Tuolumne County Business: www.tcdisasterassistance.com

CDC COVID-19 website: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Thank you for your support and efforts to protect the safety and health of our community