Covid-19 Spreads Like Wildfire - Update Jan. 10, 2022

For the second straight day (January 5th and 6th), Santa Barbara County Public Health officials reported a record number of daily coronavirus cases — 1,253.

There were 4,883 COVID-19 patients still considered infectious countywide as of January 6th, which is another record for the county.

While cases have been skyrocketing in the past few weeks, the county also is experiencing a larger volume of testing.

There were roughly 27,200 tests reported over the week ending Thursday, compared to the week prior when the county reported about 20,800 tests, according to data tracking done by Noozhawk.

How accurate is this number?

Cases in Santa Barbara County are continuing to increase, and the demand for COVID-19 testing has also increased. County Public Health Department director Van Do-Reynoso says people who test positive for the virus with an at-home rapid test are not required to report it to the county, so there are likely more cases locally than what is being reported.

Results from this recent change:

  • Skilled nursing facilities and local hospitals are changing their visitation policies due to the surge in cases.

  • Beginning Jan. 15, the state “mega event” threshold changes to 500 or more people for indoor venues, and attendees must show either proof of vaccination or a recent negative test result.

  • All indoor sporting events scheduled for this week at schools in the Santa Barbara Unified School District have been postponed

  • Isolation guidelines have changed: Individuals who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, should isolate for five days. After day five, if a COVID-19 test shows a negative result and there are no symptoms, or symptoms are resolving, isolation can end. Those who are unable to or do not want to get tested for COVID-19 should isolate or quarantine for at least 10 days, according to the state.

We must continue to wear our masks, wash our hands, and limit our contact with others. For more information please visit: https://publichealthsbc.org/

Stay safe Santa Barbara.

Covid-19Teri Jory