As of this morning at 9:18 a.m., there were a total of 335 positive cases of and six deaths due to COVID-19 in the state of California. Of these cases, at least 82acquired the disease from community transmission, meaning healthcare providers cannot identify where they contracted the virus. Right now, community transmission is occurring in the following California counties: Yolo, Solano, Sacramento, San Francisco, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Riverside.

As of last Friday, California now has 18 public health laboratories with COVID-19 testing capabilities. Patients must be referred by a medical provider to be tested, and their provider must receive prior approval from the local public health department.

Currently California’s outbreak is the third largest in the United States, behind New York (732 cases) and Washington (643 cases). It should be noted that many scientists are saying the actual number of coronavirus cases in California and country-wide could be much higher than what’s currently being reported.

Governor Newsom issued an executive order last Thursday that, among other things, extended the tax-filing deadline for California state taxes by 60 days; individual filers may now file and pay by June 15. The order also grants the state the right to commandeer hotels to use for the quarantine and treatment of COVID-19 patients. 

Sources: The New York Times, California Department of Public Health, Los Angeles Times, Office of the Governor of California, Sacramento Bee