Los Angeles County reports 358 new coronavirus cases, 13 deaths

Medical staffers work inside a COVID-19 isolation area at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center. Medical teams from the Air Force arrived at the hospital, as well as Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, on Friday to offer support in critical care units.(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

by: Los Angeles Times

Posted: Oct 18, 2020 / 05:01 PM PDT

Updated: Oct 18, 2020 / 05:01 PM PDT

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Los Angeles County public health officials on Sunday reported 358 new coronavirus cases and 13 related deaths.

The COVID-19 data released on Sundays are often lower due to laboratory reporting delays and problems with the state’s data feed.

The number of confirmed infections in Los Angeles County is doubling every 190.6 days. Hospitalizations have grown in recent days, with 751 COVID-19 patients in county medical centers as of Sunday. Hospitalizations remain short of the more than 2,200 reported at the peak of the crisis in mid-July.

State and local officials are closely watching the latest figures as they weigh when and how to reopen businesses and public facilities. L.A. County remains in the strictest tier of the state’s four-tier reopening system — Tier 1, or purple — because it continues to report more than 7 cases per 100,000 residents each day. That means that schools are shut, and many nonessential businesses remain closed for indoor operations.

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