In the latest COVID-19 livestream update, Long Beach city officials discussed the latest number of cases, testing and the upcoming school year.
COVID-19
In the latest livestream, Mayor Robert Garcia announced that the City is reporting an additional 188 cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in Long Beach to 6,552.
Garcia also announced that the current number of deaths due to the disease has now reached 159.
“COVID-19 continues to be the leading cause of death for us here in Long Beach [compared to] any of the major statistics that we track,” Garcia said.
The mayor also stated that the positivity rate in Long Beach has decreased compared to last week. In seven days, the percentage has dropped by about one point from 15.2% to 14.1%, which Garcia called a good sign.
“It’s still a lot higher than we’d like it to be. We want to continue to drop that number down,” Garcia said.
Dr. Anissa Davis also stated that the City is continuing to see a higher number of cases in younger residents. In July, cases for residents younger than 40 made up 60% of cases, compared to 41% in April.
Davis said that the City is not positive about why COVID-19 is increasing among the younger population but said many patients have said they have gone to social gatherings in recent weeks.
“It’s important to remember that events and gatherings are still prohibited in the City of Long Beach,” Davis said.
“If we’re going to slow the spread of COVID-19, we all must do our part. The best way to protect yourself and others is to limit your interactions with other people, as much as possible, and take steps to minimize viral spread.”
Testing
Mayor Garcia announced that the City would be increasing its testing capacity to 1400 tests a day.
Under State guidelines, the City must perform a total of 750 tests a day, which Long Beach has almost doubled.
Garcia said that the City had temporarily bumped up its testing capacities to 1000 tests a day to see if the City could handle a higher amount. After seeing positive results, Garcia stated that the City decided to increase testing permanently.
The mayor also stated that he is looking to expand testing further in the coming weeks.
Schools
As many schools prepare to go online in the Fall, Garcia discussed the new guidelines Governor Gavin Newsom issued for reopening.
In order to reopen, a county must be off the State’s watchlist for two weeks. If a county is taken off the watchlist after two weeks, it may return to in-person schooling.
Additionally, students in third grade or higher must wear facemasks, as well as teachers and staff. No mention was made of younger grades.
