[Note that Solano County publishes a DAILY update, and displays past weeks and months in epidemic curve charts.  However, the curve charts do not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  This methodology is accurate in a way, but it misleads the public by consistently displaying a recent downward curve which is often corrected upward on a later date. For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE – R.S.]

Wednesday, August 5: 78 new cases in 1 day, no new deaths.  Since the outbreak started: 3,884 cases, 38 deaths.

Compare previous report, Tuesday August 4:Summary

• Solano County reported 78 new cases overnight, total of 3,884 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 2 weeks, Solano reported 902 new cases, an average of 64 per day.
• Deaths – no new deaths today, total of 38 deaths.
• Active cases – Solano reported 5 more ACTIVE cases today, total of 171.  Note that only 42 of these 171 people are hospitalized, so there are a lot of infected folks out among us, hopefully quarantined.  One wonders… is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  (See SF Chronicle report on contact tracing in Bay Area – “Solano County did not respond”.)
• Hospitalizations –1 fewer currently hospitalized persons today, total of 42.  No more in the total number hospitalized since the outbreak started, 164.  (The County no longer reports Total Hospitalized, but I have added the hospitalization numbers in the Age Group chart.)  Again this week, the County offers no information about availability of ICU beds and ventilators.
• Testing – only 164 residents were tested  today, total of 53,815.  We still have a long way to go: only 12% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.

Percent Positive Test Rate

Solano County reported today’s
7-day percent positive test rate is up from 5.3% on Monday to 6.2% today.  (The chart may be misleading – see NOTE at top of this page.)  The County posted a high of 9.3% 2 weeks ago on July 22.  CONTEXT: California’s 7-day positivity rate has been falling, and is reported at 5.5% today, lower than Solano County’s 6.2%.  Increasingly, health officials and news reports are focusing on percent positive test rates.  This information is immediately important, as test positivity is one of the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.  Positive test rates in California and other southwestern states have been on the rise.

By Age Group

• Youth 17 and under – 7 new cases today, total of 385 cases. No new hospitalizations, only 2 hospitalizations since the outbreak began.  I continue to raise an alarm for Solano’s youth.  It is clear that youth can catch the disease, and it seems too many youth are ignoring social distancing orders!  Cases among Solano youth have increased to 10% of the 3,884 total confirmed cases.
• Persons 18-49 years of age – 49 new cases today, total of 2,383 cases.  This age group is 41% of the County population, but represents over 61% of the 3,884 total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  Good news is that the County reported no new hospitalizations in this age group today, total of 45 hospitalized since the outbreak began, and no new deaths among this age group, total of 3 deaths.  This young to middle age group is no doubt active, many are providing essential services out among us, and potentially spreading the virus!
• Persons 50-64 years of age – 17 new cases today, total of 736 cases.  This age group represents just under 19% of the 3,884 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations in this age group today, total of 51 hospitalized since the outbreak began, no new deaths among this age group, total of 4 deaths.
• Persons 65 years or older – 5 new cases today, total of 379 cases.  This age group represents nearly 10% of the 3,884 total cases. No new hospitalizatons today, total of 66 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No deaths in this age group today, total of 31.  In this older age group, over 17% of cases required hospitalization at one time, a substantially higher percentage than in the lower age groups.  This group accounts for 31 of the 38 deaths, or 82%.

City Data

• Benicia added 3 new cases today, total of 90 cases.
• Dixon added 6 new cases today, total of 205 cases.
• Fairfield added 27 new cases today, total of 1,266.
• Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 28 cases.
• Suisun City added 6 new cases today, total of 297 cases.
• Vacaville added 16 new cases today, total of 661 cases.
• Vallejo added 20 new cases today, total of 1,325 cases.
• Unincorporated areas – Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 12 cases.

Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  There are also tabs showing a calculated rate per 100,000 by race/ethnicity for each of these boxes.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  As of today:

• White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 21% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations and 26% of deaths.
• Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 13% of cases, but 22% of hospitalizations, and 29% of deaths.
• Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 28% of cases, 32% of hospitalizations, and 24% of deaths.
• Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases and 12% of hospitalizations, but 15% of deaths.

Much more…

The County’s new and improved Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight a report or two.  Check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.