Monday, July 20: 205 new cases today,
3 new deaths.  Since the outbreak started: 2,759 cases, 34 deaths.

Compare previous report, Friday July 17:Summary

• Solano County reported 205 new cases over the weekend and today, total of 2,759 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 7 days, Solano reported 684 new cases, an average of nearly 100 per day.
• 3 new deaths today, total of 34.  One of these deaths was someone in the 18-49 year age group.  Another was aged 50-64, and one was 65+.
• Hospitalizations – [corrected after initial posting showed no change, at 51] 3 additional  currently hospitalized persons today, total of 53.  And 3 more in the total number hospitalized since the outbreak started, 130.  (The County no longer reports Total Hospitalized, but I have added the hospitalization numbers in the Age Group chart.)
• Active cases – Solano reported 146 fewer ACTIVE cases today, total of 247.  The number of Active Cases climbed steadily Tuesday-Friday each week in July, dropping dramatically each Monday.  The County must do a phone inventory of known cases before reporting on Mondays.  Last week we hit a record high of 440.  Note that only 51 of today’s 247 active cases are hospitalized; a lot of infected people are 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”.)
• ICU beds Available remained steady at 39%.  Ventilators Available also remained steady at 90%.
• Testing – 2,769 residents were tested over the weekend and today, total of 44,267.  But we still have a long way to go: only 10% 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 at 7.9%.  Last week the number increased each day, from 5.3% on Monday to a high of 9.1% on Friday.  The recent dramatic daily increases will begin to show on the 7-day average line sometime soon.  CONTEXT: California’s 7-day positivity rate today is reported at 7.2%, and its 14-day positivity rate today is 7.4%.  Our rate in Solano County is well above the State’s rate.  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 – 26 new cases today, total of 269 cases, and no new hospitalizations, total only 2 since the outbreak began.  A week ago, there were 210 cases among this age group – we’ve seen 59 new cases in just 7 days!  I continue to raise an alarm for Solano’s youth.  Cases among Solano youth have increased in recent weeks to 9.7% of the 2,759 total confirmed cases.
• Persons 18-49 years of age – 124 new cases today, total of 1,672 cases.  This age group represents over 61% of the 2,759 total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations today, total of 33 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  1 new death among this age group today, total of 3 deaths.
• Persons 50-64 years of age – 45 new cases today, total of 539 cases.  This age group represents over 19% of the 2,759 total cases.  The County reported no new hospitalizations today, total of 41 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  1 new death among this age group, total of 4 deaths.
• Persons 65 years or older – 10 new cases today, total of 278 cases.  This age group represents 10.5% of the 2,759 total cases. 3 new hospitalizations, total of 54 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  1 new death, total of 27 deaths.  In this older age group, over 19% of cases required hospitalization at one time, a substantially higher percentage than in the lower age groups.  This group accounts for 27 of the 34 deaths, or 79%.

City Data

• Benicia added 2 new cases today, total of 57 cases.  Benicia was extremely stable with only 2 new cases for the entire month of June.  Now Benicia has seen 16 new cases in 7 days.
• Dixon added 10 new cases today, total of 145 cases.
• Fairfield added 63 new cases today, total of 944.  Fairfield has more positive cases than anywhere in Solano County.
• Rio Vista added 2 new cases today, total of 25 cases.
• Suisun City added 12 new cases today, total of 205 cases.
• Vacaville added 33 new cases today, total of 453 cases.
• Vallejo added 82 new cases today, total of 921.
• Unincorporated areas – Although the County still still shows Unincorporated at <10 (less than 10), a little math tells the story: Solano’s unincorporated areas added 1 new case today for a total of 9 cases (those unaccounted for in the other City totals).

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 22% of cases, 25% of hospitalizations and 20% of deaths.
• Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 13% of cases, but 26% of hospitalizations, and 33% of deaths.
• Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 32% of cases, 27% of hospitalizations, and 27% of deaths.
• Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases and 14% of hospitalizations, but 17% 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.