[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.]

Friday, August 7: 70 new cases in 1 day,
1 new death.  Since the outbreak started: 4,029 cases, 40 deaths.

Compare previous report, Thursday August 6:Summary

• Solano County reported 70 new cases overnight, total of 4,029 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 2 weeks, Solano reported 900 new cases, an average of 64 per day.
• Deaths – 1 new death today, another of our elders, total of 40 deaths.
• Active cases – Solano reported 6 more ACTIVE cases today, total of 198.  Note that only 37 of these 198 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 –2 fewer currently hospitalized persons today, total of 37.  However, the total number hospitalized since the outbreak started increased by 3, totaling 174.  Evidently more folks were discharged than the number of new admissions.  (The County no longer reports Total Hospitalized, but I can add the new hospitalization numbers in the Age Group report – see below.)  Again now for two straight weeks, the County offers no information about availability of ICU beds and ventilators.
• Testing – 433 residents were tested  today, total of 54,843.  We still have a long way to go: only 12.2% 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 increased each day this week, from 5.3% on Monday to 6.5% today.  (The chart may be misleading – see NOTE at top of this page.)  The County posted a high of 9.3% two weeks ago on July 22.  CONTEXT: California’s 7-day positivity rate has been falling, and is reported at 5.7% today, significantly lower than Solano County’s 6.6%.  Health officials and news reports focus on percent positive test rates as one of the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.

By Age Group

• Youth 17 and under – 7 new cases again today, total of 399 cases. No new hospitalizations, only 2 hospitalizations since the outbreak began, and no deaths.  I continue to raise an alarm for Solano’s youth.  It is clear that youth are catching the disease, and it seems too many youth are ignoring social distancing orders!  Cases among Solano youth have increased to 10% of the 4,029 total confirmed cases.
• Persons 18-49 years of age – 42 new cases today, total of 2,470 cases.  This age group is 41% of the County population, but represents over 61% of the 4,029 total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations in this age group today, total of 48 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths among this age group, total of 3 deaths.  This young to middle age group is very active, many provide essential services among us, and are likely spreading the virus!
• Persons 50-64 years of age – 13 new cases today, total of 763 cases.  This age group represents just under 19% of the 4,029 total cases.  The County reported 1 new hospitalization in this age group today, total of 55 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths among this age group, total of 4 deaths.
• Persons 65 years or older – 8 new cases today, total of 396 cases.  This age group represents nearly 10% of the 4,029 total cases.  2 new hospitalizations today, total of 69 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  1 new death in this age group today, total of 33.  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 33 of the 40 deaths, or 82.5%.

City Data

• Benicia added 1 new case today, total of 93 cases.
• Dixon added 9 new cases today, total of 220 cases.
• Fairfield added 23 new cases today, total of 1,306.
• Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 29 cases.
• Suisun City added 7 new cases today, total of 310 cases.
• Vacaville added 15 new cases today, total of 690 cases.
• Vallejo added 15 new cases today, total of 1,369 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 22% of cases, 23% of hospitalizations and 25% of deaths.
• Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 13% of cases, but 22% of hospitalizations, and 28% of deaths.
• Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 27% of cases, 31% of hospitalizations, and 22% of deaths.
• Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases and 13% 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.