“A lot of outreach and work was done to increase testing, and that has been successful,” county Department of Public Health Director Kim Saruwatari said. “We have increased tremendously.

” She said the county is now at a ratio of 236.4 tests per 100,000 residents in COVID-19 screenings, compared to 221.6 per 100,000 just over a week ago. The state threshold for large counties is 239.1. However, that figure can be adjusted, and the county is no longer being downgraded for low testing volume.

The county’s coronavirus positivity rate is 5.8 percent, up slightly from last week, and Saruwatari attributed part of the uptick to an ongoing elevated number of infections recorded in the eastern Coachella Valley.

The aggregate number of COVID-19 infections recorded since the public health documentation period began in early March is 69,407, compared to 68,920 Monday, according to the Riverside University Health System.

The agency said the number of COVID-positive hospitalizations is 194, up 15 since from Monday, and that includes 53 intensive care unit patients, an increase of 10.

Emergency Management Director Bruce Barton said the hospitalization rates have been gradually ascending over the last month, but he noted they are well below the mid-July highs, when nearly 600 people were hospitalized. “Hospitals and clinics have returned to pre-COVID levels, so those who really need care (for anything) need to come to our hospitals,” Barton said. “They are safe.”

Officials said the number of deaths tied to COVID-19 stands at 1,324, two more than Monday. The number of known active cases countywide is 6,353, an increase of 176 since Monday. The active count is derived by subtracting deaths and recoveries from the current total — 69,407 — according to the county Executive Office.

The number of verified patient recoveries is 61,730. The California Department of Public Health has calculated the county’s COVID-19 case rate at 11.2 per 100,000.

The agency two weeks ago reclassified the county in the “purple” tier, the most restrictive under Gov. Gavin Newsom’s color-coded coronavirus regulatory framework, meaning some businesses that had reopened in recent weeks were required to close again. The designation impacts gyms, restaurants, movie theaters and places of worship.

-CNS

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This process disrupts the disease, slows the spread of the disease and preserves space in our acute care hospitals. In addition, increased testing supports moving into the next level of the state’s reopening plan (red tier) that will allow more businesses, as well as schools and places of worship to reopen indoors.

The county is currently designated for the purple tier, where the COVID-19 virus is considered widespread. Based on the state’s criteria, increased testing will result in a lower case rate, allowing the move to the red tier where the virus spread is considered substantial.

Counties are placed within tiers because of their daily case rate (must be lower than seven new cases per 100,000 population) and positivity rate (lower than eight percent). Riverside County reached the positivity rate that will allow it to move to the red tier (7.8 percent), but the case rate remains higher than the state’s requirement.

This week, the state began adjusting the case rate higher for counties that are not meeting the state’s daily average testing volume, which brought Riverside County’s case rate from 7.4 to 8.6. While Riverside County has the volume to test 4,000 people a day, only half that number have been getting tested at county and state testing sites in recent weeks.

Health officials believe this is partly due to more private providers offering antigen and antibody testing, which is not calculated in the state’s testing metric for active infections. “We’ve made a lot of progress in slowing the spread of the disease and we want residents to know that more testing will help us continue to disrupt the spread of the virus,” said Kim Saruwatari, director of the Riverside University Health System – Public Health.

“At the beginning of the pandemic Riverside County led the state in per capita testing. We need to pick up our testing again – for both the purpose of isolating the sick and to help us safely reopen more parts of our community.” Saruwatari said those with and without symptoms are encouraged to get tested, as well as younger people who traditionally have not gotten screened at the same rate as other groups.

“Testing is for everyone, regardless of immigration status or insurance, available for anyone with or without symptoms, and it is free,” said Riverside County Board Chair and Fourth District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. “By getting tested, you are helping keep your family and our community healthy.”

There are 13 testing sites spread throughout Riverside County, both walk-in and drive-up services. To find locations and make an appointment, go online to gettested.ruhealth.org.

-Riverside County Joint Information Center

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Coronavirus tests for active infections slows the spread of the disease by identifying infected individuals who can then be isolated as well as their close contacts. This process disrupts the disease, slows the spread of the disease and preserves space in our acute care hospitals.

In addition, increased testing supports moving into the next level of the state’s reopening plan (red tier) that will allow more businesses, as well as schools and places of worship to reopen indoors.

The county is currently designated for the purple tier, where the COVID-19 virus is considered widespread. Based on the state’s criteria, increased testing will result in a lower case rate, allowing the move to the red tier where the virus spread is considered substantial. Counties are placed within tiers because of their daily case rate (must be lower than seven new cases per 100,000 population) and positivity rate (lower than eight percent).

Riverside County reached the positivity rate that will allow it to move to the red tier (7.8 percent), but the case rate remains higher than the state’s requirement. This week, the state began adjusting the case rate higher for counties that are not meeting the state’s daily average testing volume, which brought Riverside County’s case rate from 7.4 to 8.6.

While Riverside County has the volume to test 4,000 people a day, only half that number have been getting tested at county and state testing sites in recent weeks. Health officials believe this is partly due to more private providers offering antigen and antibody testing, which is not calculated in the state’s testing metric for active infections.

“We’ve made a lot of progress in slowing the spread of the disease and we want residents to know that more testing will help us continue to disrupt the spread of the virus,” said Kim Saruwatari, director of the Riverside University Health System – Public Health. “At the beginning of the pandemic Riverside County led the state in per capita testing. We need to pick up our testing again – for both the purpose of isolating the sick and to help us safely reopen more parts of our community.”

Saruwatari said those with and without symptoms are encouraged to get tested, as well as younger people who traditionally have not gotten screened at the same rate as other groups.

“Testing is for everyone, regardless of immigration status or insurance, available for anyone with or without symptoms, and it is free,” said Riverside County Board Chair and Fourth District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez. “By getting tested, you are helping keep your family and our community healthy.”

There are 13 testing sites spread throughout Riverside County, both walk-in and drive-up services. To find locations and make an appointment, go online to gettested.ruhealth.org.

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The first COVID-19 vaccine tested in the U.S. revved up people’s immune systems just the way scientists had hoped, researchers reported Tuesday — as the shots are poised to begin key final testing.

“No matter how you slice this, this is good news,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government’s top infectious disease expert, told The Associated Press.

The experimental vaccine, developed by Fauci’s colleagues at the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc., will start its most important step around July 27: A 30,000-person study to prove if the shots really are strong enough to protect against the coronavirus.

But Tuesday, researchers reported anxiously awaited findings from the first 45 volunteers who rolled up their sleeves back in March. Sure enough, the vaccine provided a hoped-for immune boost.

Those early volunteers developed what are called neutralizing antibodies in their bloodstream — molecules key to blocking infection — at levels comparable to those found in people who survived COVID-19, the research team reported in the New England Journal of Medicine.

“This is an essential building block that is needed to move forward with the trials that could actually determine whether the vaccine does protect against infection,” said Dr. Lisa Jackson of the Kaiser Permanente Washington Research Institute in Seattle, who led the study.

There’s no guarantee but the government hopes to have results around the end of the year — record-setting speed for developing a vaccine.

The vaccine requires two doses, a month apart.

There were no serious side effects. But more than half the study participants reported flu-like reactions to the shots that aren’t uncommon with other vaccines — fatigue, headache, chills, fever and pain at the injection site. For three participants given the highest dose, those reactions were more severe; that dose isn’t being pursued.

Some of those reactions are similar to coronavirus symptoms but they’re temporary, lasting about a day and occur right after vaccination, researchers noted.

“Small price to pay for protection against COVID,” said Dr. William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, a vaccine expert who wasn’t involved with the study.

He called the early results “a good first step,” and is optimistic that final testing could deliver answers about whether it’s really safe and effective by the beginning of next year.

“It would be wonderful. But that assumes everything’s working right on schedule,” Schaffner cautioned.

Moderna’s share price jumped nearly 15 percent in trading after U.S. markets closed. Shares of the company, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, have nearly quadrupled this year.

Tuesday’s results only included younger adults. The first-step testing later was expanded to include dozens of older adults, the age group most at risk from COVID-19. Those results aren’t public yet but regulators are evaluating them. Fauci said final testing will include older adults, as well as people with chronic health conditions that make them more vulnerable to the virus — and Black and Latino populations likewise affected.

Nearly two dozen possible COVID-19 vaccines are in various stages of testing around the world. Candidates from China and Britain’s Oxford University also are entering final testing stages.

The 30,000-person study will mark the world’s largest study of a potential COVID-19 vaccine so far. And the NIH-developed shot isn’t the only one set for such massive U.S. testing, crucial to spot rare side effects. The government plans similar large studies of the Oxford candidate and another by Johnson & Johnson; separately, Pfizer Inc. is planning its own huge study.

Already, people can start signing up to volunteer for the different studies.

People think “this is a race for one winner. Me, I’m cheering every one of them on,” said Fauci, who directs NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

“We need multiple vaccines. We need vaccines for the world, not only for our own country.”

Around the world, governments are investing in stockpiles of hundreds of millions of doses of the different candidates, in hopes of speedily starting inoculations if any are proven to work.

LAURAN NEERGAARD – AP

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Coronavirus testing is available again in Blythe for residents of the eastern Riverside County community who want to know whether they have contracted the virus.

Testing started June 10 at the site — 445 N. Broadway Avenue – and will continue for two weeks. Riverside County health officials had previously operated a testing location in Blythe and are returning because there is a need to know the extent of spread in the community and a recent outbreak at a local state prison.

The opening of the Blythe site was one of several changes to the sites made to provide testing services to a wider portion of community. Additional moves include:

-The walk-up sites in Mecca, San Jacinto and Valle Vista outside Hemet have closed.

-A walk-up site at 31215 Wild Meadow Drive in French Valley near Temecula has opened. The location operates Tuesday through Saturday between 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.

-A walk-up site at the Edgemont Women’s Club in Moreno Valley, 21640 Cottonwood Ave., will be operate June 17 through June 19 between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Testing at the county-run sites is open to anyone, whether they have symptoms or not, and there are no out-of-pocket costs to individuals. Participants will be asked to provide information about their health insurance, but they will not be charged any share of costs or copay, and will be allowed to get tested even if they do not provide the insurance information. You must have an appointment to get tested.

More than 146,000 coronavirus tests have been conducted in Riverside County, with more than 10,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus. Testing continues to be an integral focus as more residents visit more businesses.

Visit www.rivcoph.org/coronavirus/testing for more information on testing locations and how to make an appointment.

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A drive-up testing site will be opened Tuesday at the old Sears parking lot in Riverside to replace the testing location at Harvest Christian Fellowship that is closing.

The department store site is located near the intersection of Arlington and Streeter avenues. The church location opened April 1 and its last day of testing will be Saturday. It was one of four county-operated drive up testing locations. There are also four walk-up sites operated by the county at various locations and eight walk-up sites operated by the state.

“We want to thank Harvest Christian for everything they did to support the testing of Riverside County residents,” said Kim Saruwatari, director of Public Health. “Thousands of people have been tested there and that could not have happened without the support of the church
leadership and local community.”

Testing at the county-run sites is open to anyone, whether they have symptoms or not, and there are no out-of-pocket costs to individuals. Participants will be asked to provide information about their health insurance, but they will not be charged any share of costs or copay, and will be allowed to get tested even if they do not provide the insurance information.

You must have an appointment to get tested.

“Testing continues to be an important driver in our public health response, as well as the county’s reopening process,” said Vice Chair Karen Spiegel, Second District Supervisor.

“Everyone should consider getting tested. It’s free and it helps show that we are a healthy county.”

So far, more than 106,000 Riverside County residents have been tested at the 16 total community test sites, along with screenings at clinics, hospitals, private labs and other locations.

For a complete list of all testing locations and instructions on how to make an appointment, visit www.rivcoph.org/coronavirus/testing.

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Riverside County health officials are adding two walk-in testing sites – one in Moreno Valley and the other in Cathedral City — for those interested in being screened for coronavirus.

Testing at Crossword Christian Church in Moreno Valley and the Cathedral City Public Library started Monday and will continue Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. The church is located at 21401 Box Springs Road, while the library is located at 33520 Date Palm Drive.

These are the first walk-in sites operated by the county; the four others are drive up sites located in Indio, Lake Elsinore, Perris and Riverside.

“As we continue our response to this epidemic, we have refocused our efforts to test as many Riverside County residents as possible,” said Kim Saruwatari, director of Riverside County public health. “These two sites and others that are in the planning process will help reach that goal.”

So far, more than 80,000 Riverside County residents have been tested at the county’s four sites, along with screenings at clinics, hospitals, private labs and other locations. There are also eight state-run, walk-in testing sites located throughout Riverside County.

Testing at the county-run sites is open to anyone, whether they have symptoms or not, and there are no out-of-pocket costs to individuals. Participants will be asked to provide information about their health insurance, but they will not be charged any share of costs or copay, and will be allowed to get tested even if they do not provide the insurance information. You must have an appointment to get tested.

To make an appointment at a county-operated site, call 800-945-6171. To make an online appointment at the state-run testing site, click https://lhi.care/covidtesting or those without internet access can call 888-634-1123.

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While widespread COVID-19 testing has been heralded as the key to reopening a cratering U.S. economy, it’s a lot more complicated than boosting the number of people tested.

“You need the right test at the right time for the right person for the right result for the right action,” said infectious disease epidemiologist Michael Osterholm in a Center for Health Journalism Covering Coronavirus webinar this week.

Instead of aiming for an arbitrary number of people tested, Osterholm emphasized the need for “smart testing,” an approach that considers the purpose of the test, the meaning of the results, and the best way to use that data. 

Osterholm, a professor and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, joined health and science reporter Apoorva Mandavilli of The New York Times to discuss the current state of diagnostic and antibody testing and what that means for reopening America. They also offered key questions and strategies for journalists interested in gaining a better understanding of testing — and its limitations — in their communities.

What does a test mean?

COVID-19 testing generally refers to two key tests: the PCR test, which detects if someone is actively infected, and antibody tests, which can indicate if someone has previously been infected.

Just a few weeks ago, federal guidelines for reopening states called for at least 14 days of declining cases using a standardized testing method to determine active infections.

While the majority of the country is reopening, planning to reopen or relaxing restrictions, Osterholm said he isn’t aware that any of those states have met those criteria. There’s also a widespread misunderstanding about what a test can and can’t do.

“I’ve not seen it used in any meaningful way in recent weeks that would suggest we have any idea what we’re doing,” he said.

For one, using an arbitrary testing number as a goal is a misplaced priority, he said. Instead, it’s important to consider the purpose of the testing, what the results mean, and how they can be used.

A PCR test that can positively register 97% of COVID-19 cases could help assess the virus’ current presence in a community, but wouldn’t be as helpful for a high-risk population such as a nursing home, prison or meat-packing plant, where missing 3% of cases could lead to a quick spread.

“Suddenly, it’s a match into a gas can,” Osterholm said.

Similarly, an antibody test might be useful for analyzing how widely the virus has already spread in a community. But relying on that test to gauge individual immunity could be dangerous for a health care worker who gets a false positive and decides to relax safety measures. (Despite media attention on concepts like “immunity passports,” there are still many unknowns about whether recovering from COVID-19 confers immunity, the speakers noted).

Asking the right questions

In high-risk places, testing is important but it’s not enough. It’s important to look at what other preventative measures are in place — such as screening controls, personal protective equipment for workers and whether there’s adequate staffing in places like nursing homes.

While testing is critical and informative, if you can’t combine it with other actions, “You’re documenting a train wreck, you’re not preventing it,” Osterholm said.  

Journalists should go beyond the numbers in their community and ask critical questions about how testing is being used, suggested reporter Mandavilli, who begins her new post at The New York Times next week. Ask people how quickly they got their results. For those with positive results, ask whether there was follow-up, isolation recommendations and contact tracing. If not, why not?

In the absence of clear overarching federal guidelines, states are coming up with their own playbooks for deciding when to reopen schools. Ask what’s guiding their decision making: Are they using science? What types of evidence are they examining? Which experts have they consulted?

Wading through information

Given how little we known about COVID-19, it’s not easy to determine the truth, Mandavilli said. 

The landscape is also complicated by the proliferation of preprints, or drafts of research papers that are posted online before they have been peer reviewed.

Finding trusted sources becomes even more critical when reporting on preprints. She asks reliable experts questions such as: What do you think of this study? What are the caveats? Is this a big enough number of people? Does the analysis hold up?

“A healthy, healthy dose of skepticism and a lot of vetting by experts can get us part of the way at least,” she said.

Osterholm encouraged reporters to find sources who aren’t focused on being quoted but care more about getting the right information out.

What’s next?

Osterholm, who has extensively studied other coronaviruses such as SARS and MERS, said that even the idea of controlling a virus like this is a mistaken belief.  The only certainty is the persistent strength of the virus, he said: “This virus is going to keep on trying to get to that herd immunity level and we have to understand that.”

He compared efforts to contain it to keeping water in a leaky bucket: “If there’s one micro hole, that virus will escape.” 

Mandavilli said it’s not surprising that when countries started to reopen there are surges in infections.  As many epidemiologists have predicted, the future will come in waves, she said. When regions are in lockdown and people are staying home, the curve of cases will plateau. Reopening will lead to spikes.

One silver lining is that the pandemic has led to a stronger demand and appreciation for science journalism: “If newspapers do survive, maybe there will be more science desks,” she said.

By Kellie Schmitt

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INDIO (CNS) – Drive-thru coronavirus testing will begin today at the Riverside County Fairgrounds in Indio after being moved over the weekend from Indian Wells.

The previous site at the Southwest Church was in operation since March 17.

The testing schedule will remain the same as before the move: Tuesdays through Saturdays, “until supplies are exhausted or the community’s needs have been met,” according to Riverside University Health System spokesman Jose Arballo.

Area residents can be screened for symptoms over the phone by calling 800-945-6171, and if deemed eligible, can schedule an appointment. Drive-ups without an appointment will not be tested.

Some of the symptoms include fever, sore throat, cough, runny nose or
congestion.

People who have been exposed to a confirmed case can also get tested,
officials said.

Testing will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in parking lots 5 and 5A off of Arabia Street, between Highway 111 and Doctor Carreon Boulevard.

A second testing location at Diamond Stadium in Lake Elsinore will also be open Tuesday. The Lake Elsinore site has operated since March 19 and by appointment only, as well. Testing is available there Sundays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Those looking to be tested at the Lake Elsinore location must live within 50 miles of Riverside and can make appointments at www.projectbaseline.com/study/covid-19, or by calling 800-945-6171.

County officials on Monday also announced a third testing location — at the Harvest Christian Fellowship church in Riverside, which will also be by appointment only and is scheduled to open up Wednesday morning.

“Riverside County continues to offer more options for residents to get tested,” said Supervisor Karen Spiegel in a statement. “This third drive- up location will help ensure that those who have symptoms have options to get tested.”

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LAKE ELSINORE (CNS) – Residents in portions of Southern California can be screened and make appointments online for drive-up coronavirus testing at The Diamond in Lake Elsinore, officials announced today.

People living within 50 miles of Riverside who believe they are at risk for the coronavirus can screen symptoms and risk factors at the Baseline COVID-19 website, projectbaseline.com/covid-19, and if eligible, participate in testing at The Diamond, Riverside University Health System, Public Health Director Kim Saruwatari said.

People must be screened as high risk to make an appointment to be tested at The Diamond, which is unable to take walk-ins, Saruwatari said.

The drive-up testing at The Diamond will have additional test kits and equipment with this expansion, Saruwatari said. The testing at The Diamond began Saturday and had been scheduled to end Sunday, but is being extended, Saruwatari said.

“More people who need the test can get it,” Saruwatari said.

People in the eligible area may still call 800-941-6171 to make an appointment to be tested at The Diamond, but will soon be directed to the website for all appointments, Saruwatari said.

All appointments for the drive-up testing site in the Coachella Valley will continue to be made by telephone, Saruwatari said.

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