March 11 marked the second anniversary of the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic by the World Health Organization.
Five days later, yesterday, March 16, the regional stay-at-home order began, a fact that calls for reflection and learning from the experience to better face the next crisis, said San Mateo County Health Chief Louise Rogers. through a press release.
"This time of transition feels hopeful, although some caution remains. This is our new reality. But we should be proud that we were able to do something great: defeat a pandemic. And we did it together," he stressed.
And it is encouraging, he said, to experience some stability in key trends this March, while reflecting on reaching the two-year milestones of the initial events that unfolded when the global COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020.
He added that, currently, the level of virus transmission is similar to that experienced in early December, so San Mateo County is classified as a "low" COVID-19 community level according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) rubric.
"Our 7-day average case rate, reported by the state yesterday, is very similar to a week ago, at 9.8 cases per 100,000 population, compared to 10.2 cases per 100,000 population the previous week," he said.
Those figures, he said, show that there is an average of 76 new cases of COVID-19 per day compared to 80, according to last week's data.
He reported that since a peak of 239 cases per 100,000 inhabitants on a weekly average was recorded last January 8, the rate of cases has decreased by 96 percent.
Thus, test positivity rates countywide - 1.8 percent - and in health equity quartile census tracts - 2.2 percent - are also slightly lower than those recorded last week in the 7-day lagged data through March 5.
Monday's census of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 was 17, low and manageable, the official said.
At the same time, he explained that there are still 6 residents in the hotel that offers safe isolation, and due to the decrease in the need for this resource, they are already working on closing it for next month.
"We are very appreciative of the collaboration we have had with each hospital's discharge planning team, as well as the ongoing close coordination with Human Services Agency colleagues and shelter providers to offer this protection to residents who cannot safely isolate themselves in their homes," he said.
On the issue of vaccination, he stressed, the focus continues to be on the least reached groups through targeted county-sponsored actions for ages 12+ and 5-11 in: South San Francisco, Daly City, San Mateo, Half Moon Bay, Redwood City and East Palo Alto.
The county's overall vaccination rate - including all eligible and ineligible residents - was 89 percent for those who received at least one dose and 83 percent for those who are fully vaccinated as of March 13.
"Population groups in which we have not yet reached 80 percent of having received a first vaccination include the African-American (68 percent), Latino (79 percent) and Pacific Islander (66 percent) populations, as well as the 5- to 12-year-old population (66 percent).
Currently, the number of residents who have received a COVID-19 booster exceeds 419 thousand and 81 percent of those over 65 years of age.
However, Rogers said there is still an 8 percentage point reinforcement acceptance gap compared to the countywide rate.
"As with the primary series, we see slow progress that requires consistent access in each of our communities. We continue to work with many partners throughout the community to reinforce the importance of vaccination, including boosters, as the greatest protection against the risks of serious illness or death from COVID-19."
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