Humboldt County: One Additional Case Confirmed Today

April 29, 2020

One additional case of COVID-19 was confirmed today, bringing to 54 the total number of Humboldt County residents who have tested positive for the virus.

The following transmission information is based on the most recent data available for all confirmed cases:

• Contact to a Known Case: 23

• Travel-Acquired: 20

• Community Transmission: 10

• Under Investigation: 1

For the most recent COVID-19 information, visit cdc.gov or cdph.ca.gov. Local information is available at humboldtgov.org or during business hours by contacting covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us or calling 707-441-5000.

What do these numbers mean?

• Total new confirmed cases—the number of test-confirmed positive cases since the previous report.

• Total number of confirmed cases—the number of test-confirmed positive cases since the pandemic began, including people who have recovered from the illness.

• Total number of hospitalizations—total number of people with confirmed cases of COVID who have been hospitalized since the pandemic began, including people who have been released.

• Total number recovered—the number of confirmed cases who are no longer in isolation, meaning they have met Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria for release, including absence of fever for at least three days without use of fever-reducing medicine, improvement in symptoms and have had seven days or more since onset of symptoms.

• Total number of people tested by Public Health Laboratory—number of people whose sample was tested by the Humboldt County Public Health Laboratory.

• Total number of people tested by all other sources—total number of tests performed by the CDC, the CDPH, LabCorp and Quest Diagnostics. Non-local labs have a slower turnaround time than our local lab.

• Public Health Laboratory test capacity—the approximate number of testing kits that are complete and ready to be administered. This number is decreased by testing and increased as additional supplies are acquired.

• Public Health Laboratory turnaround time—the estimated amount of time it takes per testing run. Each run can include up to 20 samples; multiple batches can be run each day.

• Transmission data

  • travel-acquired—nationally, internationally or regionally

  • contact to known case—an individual found to have been in direct contact with someone who tested positive for the virus

  • community transmission—spread without travel or known contact to any other confirmed case

  • under investigation—confirmed case whose means of transmission has not yet been determined.

• Regional data—the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 per region. The three reporting regions of Humboldt County are:

  • Northern Humboldt— extends south from Humboldt’s County’s border with Del Norte County (North) to Highway 299 (South).

  • Greater Humboldt Bay Area—extends south from Highway 299 (North) to Highway 36 (South).

  • Southern Humboldt—extends south from Highway 36 (North) to Humboldt County’s southern border with Mendocino County.

• Gender—the gender of individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19. Total cases, shown by percentage.

• Mean age—the average age of all the individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19. Average age is calculated by adding all the ages of individuals together and dividing by the number of cases.

• Test rates and confirmed case rates relative to the State of California—the number of tests performed per 100,000 people. Numbers of tests performed are provided by the Humboldt County Public Health Laboratory, LabCorp, Quest Diagnostics, CDPH and the CDC. Population estimates are based on data from the United States Census Bureau. Rates per 100,000 are calculated by dividing the total number of tests performed by the population of the jurisdiction and multiplying the result by 100,000.

• Confirmed case rates relative to the State of California—the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 people. Test results are provided by the Humboldt County Public Health Laboratory, LabCorp, Quest Diagnostics, CDPH and the CDC. Population estimates are based on data from the United States Census Bureau. Rates per 100,000 are calculated by dividing the total number of confirmed cases by the population of the jurisdiction and multiplying the result by 100,000.

Notes on patient and demographic data

To protect the identity of people with COVID-19, their specific location of residence will not be disclosed. The Humboldt County Public Health Branch is legally responsible for protecting personal health information, including residence address, specific age, recent travel, the identities and locations of any contacts, the provider of medical treatment, the course of illness and any other information that might identify an individual with or exposed to the virus unless it serves the interests of public health to do so.

Although we understand it is of interest to residents, providing location and demographic information to the general public does nothing to slow the spread of illness. Humboldt County is experiencing untraceable person-to-person transmission, also known as “community spread,” and there is no place that can be considered safe. To reduce your chances of acquiring or spreading COVID-19, avoid travel, wash your hands, keep yourself and your environment clean, follow the shelter-in-place order, and do not leave home for any reason unless it is absolutely necessary to do so.

The following case information is provided daily Monday through Saturday:

• New positive cases

• Total positive cases to date

• Total hospitalizations to date

• Total Public Health Lab tests to date

• Total commercial lab tests to date

• Public Health Lab test capacity, total and daily, and estimated turnaround time

• Transmission data

  • travel-acquired

  • contact to known case

  • community transmission

  • under investigation

Additional information is updated each Friday:

• Regional data

• Gender

• Mean age

• Test rates and positive test rates relative to the State of California.