By Kathryn Dunn | editor@claremont-courier.com

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said there were 239 new cases of COVID-19 found in the last 24 hours; the smallest increase since March 26. In Claremont, 12 people are infected for a rate of 32.89 per 100,000 people. No details on those cases were provided, however, the county did note they do not live in an unincorporated part of the city.

There were 25 new deaths since Sunday, 22 who had underlying health conditions. Eleven people who died were over the age of 65 and 12 people were between the ages of 41 to 65 years old, the county said.  One person between the ages of 41 to 65 who died had no reported underlying health conditions.

To date, Los Angeles County has had 9,420 cases and 320 deaths. As of today, county public health officials said 25 percent of the people testing positive have been hospitalized at some point during their illness. The county public health department said 13 percent of the 52,000 people tested for coronavirus had a positive result.

All trails, beaches and non-essential businesses will remain closed through May 15, and both private and public gatherings of people who do not already live together are prohibited.

The enhanced order, as the county calls it, now requires that employees and anyone conducting essential business must wear a cloth face covering as of April 15 at midnight. Locally, most grocery stores are already asking customers to wear masks or face coverings.

The first death from coronavirus in Los Angeles county was reported on March 11. The following Sunday, March 15, Governor Gavin Newsom set new guidelines for California, including closing all bars and nightclubs, while limiting public gatherings to 10 people or less. The county followed on March 16 with an official order, although it had identified just 69 cases, 10 of which were due to community transmission.

Drive up testing at Pomona Fairplex launched last week, however, it is still limited to people with symptoms, or people who have been prevented from working because of contact with someone who has been infected, the county said. People older than 65 years of age or those with underlying chronic health issues, get priority for same or next day testing appointments.

To find out if you are eligible for testing, you can take a short questionnaire on the county website by visiting https://lacovidprod.service-now.com/rrs.

The county’s public health officials say the best defense is still to practice physical distancing, wash your hands frequently and stay home. If you must go out, as of Tuesday, the county says all people are to wear a face covering while visitng essentil businesses or in public if you are going to come into contact with someone.

A cloth face covering can be tied to your head with straps or elastic, or simply wrapped around your lower face, as long as it covers your nose and mouth. Many materials are acceptable, like cotton, silk or linen, the county said. Hand sewn masks are acceptable, as are scarves and bandanas or coverings made from t-shirts, sweatshirts or towels.

If you are ill, even with mild symptoms, county officials say to self-isolate at home for seven days and until you are fever and symptom free for 72 hours. For those who have been in close contact with a person who has tested positive, the county requires that you quarantine for 14 days from your last contact with that person.