- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
California’s COVID-19 resource use, deaths expected to peak mid-month
The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation is an independent global health research organization at the University of Washington School of Medicine that has been forecasting COVID-19 resource use and deaths across the nation, as Lake County News has reported.
The institute’s forecasts show California’s number of cases creates a far flatter curve than the nation as a whole and many other states.
In updated estimates issued over the weekend, which were based on newer and more complete information, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation puts California’s peak resource use – specifically, hospital beds and ventilators – on April 14, where last week it had been put at April 26.
The institute estimates that California’s deaths will peak on April 17 at about 70 per day. Previously, the forecast had expected deaths to peak at 100 per day on April 25.
The nation’s peak resource use remains at April 15, while the institute has pushed back its peak deaths to April 16.
As of Sunday night, the number of cases statewide totaled 15,182, with 350 deaths, according to a survey of Public Health departments across the state conducted by Lake County News.
Among the new cases on Sunday was Lake County’s first, as Lake County News has reported.
Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace said the patient – who had been from contact with a known case at an out-of-county workplace – is currently doing well, following appropriate precautions, and is isolated.
Officials did not release the patient’s gender or community of residence.
As of Sunday, Lassen, Mariposa, Modoc, Sierra and Trinity have so far not reported positive cases.
Counties across the state are following separate reporting protocols. Some have online dashboards that break down case numbers, tests, gender and age, and recovery status, while others do not.
Meanwhile, the number of tests for COVID-19 are continuing to grow across the state.
The California Department of Public Health reported that, as of the latest numbers available on Saturday, approximately 131,500 tests had been conducted in California. At least 116,563 results have been received and another 15,000 are pending.
CDPH said those numbers include data California has received from commercial, private and academic labs, including Quest, LabCorp, Kaiser, University of California and Stanford, and the 22 state and county health labs currently testing.
The state’s numbers indicate that the number of male patients continues to trend higher than females, with the 18 to 49 age group having the largest number of patients – nearly the same as the 50 to 64 and the 65 and above age groups, combined.
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