Santa Barbara County COVID-19 cases cut in half since late July
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — With an 'all hands on deck' effort from the entire community, Santa Barbara County’s COVID-19 case rate has been trimmed in half since late July.
“We can finally say the declining numbers we were hoping to see are real and substantial,” second district supervisor Gregg Hart said.
In late July, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department set forth an aggressive plan to cut cases in half by the end of August.
This week, the county’s case positivity rate dropped to 7.2% — below the state’s 8% threshold.
Over the past seven days, 61 new cases were recorded on average.
Coronavirus cases dropped by nearly 40% in Santa Maria and 30% in Santa Barbara.
“I’m very pleased to report that we have surpassed that ambitious goal with another week to go in August,” Hart said.
This will allow the public health department to start accepting waiver applications for in-person school reopenings.
“Schools with K through sixth grade have the option now to return to in-person learning,” public health director Van Do-Reynoso said.
The public health department released these applications on their website Friday night.
“The earliest possibility for schools opening is two weeks after receipt of the completed application form,” public health officer Henning Ansorg said.
Across town in Isla Vista, many students have already begun moving back into the densely populated college community.
This has led to a dangerous spike in COVID-19 cases.
“A lot of those sentiments can produce gatherings and a lack of adherence,” Do-Reynoso said.
Throughout the county, younger age groups are experiencing an alarming increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations.
“Over 40% of hospitalizations in the county currently are people in their twenties, thirties and forties,” Ansorg concluded.
Right now, the county’s current case rate per 100,000 people is nearly 139.
If that number drops below 100 cases, the Santa Barbara County Public Health Department hopes to allow even more schools to open for in-person instruction.
