As of Tuesday morning, the Dashboard of the Hemet Unified School District (HUSD) reported recently confirmed cases (last two weeks) of COVID at Idyllwild School as being no students and one staff member, meaning 0.33% of its combined student/staff population, the same as last week. At Hemet High, no students and two staff members are reported as confirmed cases, which is 0.08% of its student/staff population, less than half of last week’s report.
The HUSD Dashboard states: “Positive cases will appear on the Dashboard for 14 days from the date they are reported and then will be removed after the 14th day.” So, HUSD’s rolling Dashboard does not report the cumulative confirmed cases throughout the district, but rather those cases confirmed as being active during the previous two weeks.
As of Tuesday, Riverside County Public Health (RCPH) reported 239 total cases of COVID in the Idyllwild-Pine Cove community, with 232 recovered and four deaths, leaving three cases currently active in the community.
County-wide, as of Dec. 6, RCPH reported a total of 379,590 confirmed COVID cases (7,822 more than last week) with 5,475 deaths (117 more than last week) and 370,005 recovered, leaving 9,585 active cases in Riverside County. The county reports 243 hospitalized COVID patients, 63 of which are in intensive care. The state reports 98 intensive care unit beds available in Riverside County (19 more than last week).
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been alternating between rating Riverside County as a “Substantial” vs. “High” transmission area. Currently, the county is again downrated to “Substantial.”
The state reports that in Riverside County, 8.1% of ages 5 to 11, 49.0% of ages 12 to 17, 57.4% of ages 18 to 49, 71.5% of ages 50 to 64, and 72.2% of ages 65 and above have been fully vaccinated. You can visit https://rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine-with-Registration to schedule vaccinations.
As of Dec. 6, California has reported 4,845,295 total confirmed COVID cases statewide (43,452 more than last week), with 74,209 resulting deaths (553 more than last week).
As of Dec. 1, the CDC reported the national seven-day moving average of daily new U.S. COVID cases as 86,413, down 8.5% from the previous week.
The newest coronavirus variant, Omicron, has now spread to at least 45 countries worldwide, and has been identified in at least 16 U.S. states, including California, the New York Times reports. Still little is known about the Omicron variant. Early indications “suggest” Omicron, while being much more transmissible (meaning more highly contagious) than Delta, “may be” less dangerous in the sickness it causes, but scientists are cautioning more definitive information will not be known for some weeks, according to the Associated Press (AP). Delta remains the variant of most concern within the U.S. The AP further notes we are now about two years into the outbreak of COVID-19 and it has killed more than 780,000 Americans, with deaths currently running at about 860 per day. CDC urges vaccination, including booster shots, to individuals ages 18 and above.
As Omicron rises, public health experts continue to advise people to continue what has been working regarding the Delta variant, which remains the foremost COVID threat — masking, distancing, avoiding crowded locations and, of course, vaccination with boosters.
CDC urges widespread vaccination for COVID-19 remains a crucial tool to best protect everyone, especially those at highest risk, from severe illness and death. CDC experts recommend everyone ages 5 and older get vaccinated to help protect them and others. They urge that vaccinating children ages 5 and older helps keep them in school and enables them to more safely participate in sports, playdates and other group activities, and can also help protect their younger brothers and sisters who are not eligible for vaccination and other family members who may be at increased risk due to age or preexisting conditions.
CDC now urges booster doses for all adults ages 18 and older beginning six months after becoming fully vaccinated. About 43.0 million Americans have now received boosters. Those who received the J&J shot can get a Pfizer or Moderna booster, since CDC has authorized boosters of a different manufacturer than the original vaccination.
COVID vaccinations are available in Idyllwild by appointment at Idyllwild Pharmacy and monthly at Idyllwild School on scheduled vaccination Saturdays — the next scheduled Idyllwild School vaccination date is this coming Saturday, Dec. 11, and another is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 8.
Further CDC resources are available at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/.