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State Officials Announce Latest COVID-19 Facts

Date: March 18, 2022
Number: NR22-057
Contact: CDPHpress@cdph.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO – Today, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) released the most recent statistics on COVID-19 and updates on the state's pandemic response. The most up to date data is available on the state's COVID-19 data dashboard.

Updated Guidance for Mega Events

Effective April 1, 2022, the requirement for vaccine verification or proof of negative tests for attendees at Indoor Mega Events will move to a strong recommendation. See the full updated guidance. 

Statewide COVID-19 Data

Rates of cases, hospitalizations and deaths are highest among unvaccinated individuals and lowest among boosted individuals. This is true for all age groups. See additional data for unvaccinated and vaccinated cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Vaccinations

• 72,366,458 total vaccines administered.
• 83.6% of the eligible population (5+) has been vaccinated with at least one dose.
• 28,754 people a day are receiving COVID-19 vaccination (average daily dose count over 7 days).

Cases

• California has 8,450,009 confirmed cases to date.
• Today's average case count is 2,785 (average daily case count over 7 days).
• Unvaccinated people are 5.0 times more likely to get COVID-19 than boosted individuals (February 21, 2022 – February 27, 2022).

Testing

• The testing positivity rate is 1.5% (average rate over 7 days).

Hospitalizations

• There are 2,057 hospitalizations statewide.
• There are 343 ICU patients statewide.
• Unvaccinated people are 7.3 times more likely to be hospitalized than boosted individuals (February 21, 2022 – February 27, 2022).

Deaths

• There have been 87,194 COVID-19 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
• COVID-19 claims the lives of 95 Californians each day (average daily death count over 7 days).
• Unvaccinated people are 14.5 times more likely to die than boosted individuals (February 14, 2022 – February 20, 2022).

ADDITIONAL UPDATES

Slow the Spread: Get Vaccinated and Boosted for COVID-19

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection continues as a number of Californians remain unvaccinated and unboosted.

Real-world evidence continues to show that the vaccine is preventing severe illness, hospitalization, and death. Public health officials urge Californians to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

It is recommended that every vaccinated person 12 years or older should get a booster as long as they received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least five months ago or they received their Johnson & Johnson vaccine at least two months ago.

Vaccination appointments can be made by visiting the MyTurn website (myturn.ca.gov) or calling 1-833-422-4255. The consent of a parent or legal guardian may be needed for those under age 18 to receive a vaccination. Visit Vaccinate All 58 to learn more about the safe and effective vaccines available for all Californians 5+.

Your Actions Save Lives

Protect yourself, family, friends and your community by following these prevention measures:

• Wear A Mask When Recommended or Required: Under California's mask guidance, masks are strongly recommended for all individuals in most indoor settings.  Masks will still be required for everyone in high transmission settings like public transit, emergency shelters, health care settings, correctional facilities, homeless shelters and long-term care facilities. Local jurisdictions may have additional requirements beyond the state requirements based on local conditions.
• Upgrade Your Mask: Good fit and filtration continue to be the best way to get the most out of your mask. The best masks for preventing COVID-19 include the N95, KN95 and KF94. If you don't have access to one of these masks, wear a surgical mask or a surgical mask with a cloth mask on top. If you choose a fabric mask, opt for one with three or more cloth layers. No matter what kind of mask you wear, check the fit by avoiding gaps above the nose or on the sides.
• Get Vaccinated for COVID-19 and Flu: It's your turn now! It's recommended for everyone over six months of age to be vaccinated for the flu. For COVID-19, Californians age 5+ are eligible to make appointments or go to a walk-in site for vaccination. You can get your flu and COVID-19 vaccines on the same day.
• My Vaccine Record is an easy way to show vaccination status at venues or businesses that require proof of vaccination. Visit the Digital COVID-19 Vaccine Record website today to get your vaccine record.
• Recommendations if You're Sick or Have Been Exposed: If you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches), or believe you have been exposed, get tested, call your health care provider, and stay home and away from others. Free, confidential testing is available statewide. Know what to do if you test positive for COVID-19 or have been exposed to COVID-19.
• Long-Term Care Facility Visitation: Visitation requirements for long-term health care facilities that took effect on January 7 have expired. For additional information on visitation requirements, see the CDPH All Facilities Letter and CDSS Provider Information Notice. 
• Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

• Travel tips: Delay travel (both domestic and international) until you are fully vaccinated. See the CDC's full travel guidance. If you decide to travel, a recent travel advisory; recommends that all travelers arriving in California test for COVID-19 within three to five days after arrival, regardless of their vaccination status.
  
• Add Your Phone to the Fight:  Sign up for COVID-19 exposure notifications from CA Notify. Also, individuals who test positive for COVID-19 – including those who test at home – are able to alert others of a potential exposure more quickly and conveniently. Individuals can now initiate the notification process as soon as they are aware of their positive test result. For more information, please visit the "Notify Others" page on CA Notify.
• Answer the call or text if a contact tracer from the CA COVID Team or your local health department tries to connect.
• Check with your local health department about local conditions. Local health jurisdictions can implement protocols that are stricter than state guidance. 

Tracking COVID-19 in California

• Data and Tools – Models and dashboards for researchers, scientists and the public
• COVID-19 Age, Race & Ethnicity Data – Weekly updated Age, Race & Ethnicity data
• Health Equity Dashboard – See how COVID-19 highlights existing inequities in health
• Tracking Variants – Data on the variants California is currently monitoring
• Safe Schools for All Hub – Information about safe in-person instruction
• COVID-19 Wastewater Surveillance – Monitoring the virus that causes COVID-19
  

Testing Turnaround Time

• The testing turnaround time dashboard reports how long California patients are waiting for COVID-19 test results. During the week of March 6 to March 12, the average time patients waited for test results was 1.4 day. During this same time period, 90% of patients received test results in one day and 96% received them within two days.

Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)

• As of March 14, 2022 there have been 900 cases of Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) reported statewide. MIS-C is a rare inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19 that can damage multiple organ systems. MIS-C can require hospitalization and be life threatening.