Riverside County Coronavirus Update

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — On Tuesday, the California Department of Public Health will update county statistics for positivity and case rates, which, in part, determine what health restrictions are lifted or remain in place.

Last Tuesday, the state reported the county's coronavirus positivity rate at 1.9 percent, and the state-adjusted case rate was 3.4 cases per 100,000 residents, based on a rolling seven-day average. The numbers put Riverside County in the "orange tier" of the state's color-coded "Blueprint for a Safer Economy." In order to move to the less restrictive yellow tier within the framework, the positivity rate must drop below 2 percent, and the ongoing case rate must be 2 cases or less per 100,000 residents.

In the meantime, according to the Riverside University Health System, 70 people countywide are hospitalized with coronavirus, seven more than Friday. That includes 19 intensive care unit patients, two more than Friday.

The agency does not provide updated COVID-19 statistics on weekends.

The total number of COVID-19 cases recorded since the public health documentation period began in March 2020 was 299,173, up 109 from last week.

A total of 4,588 deaths from virus-related complications have been recorded in the past 13 months, one more than Friday.

As of Monday, nearly 1.8 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in Riverside County. The portal to make an appointment for a vaccine at county-run and other sites can be accessed via www.rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine. Anyone who needs assistance may also call the county's 211 help line.

Related COVID news

In Indio, the California Office of Emergency Services has organized a COVID-19 vaccination site for asylum seekers in a parking lot near Highway 111 and Monroe Street, according to a report from the Desert Sun.

Indio Police Department spokesman Ben Guitron confirmed the site was being erected at the location, but offered no additional details. Members of the California National Guard were working the location as of midday Monday, according to reports from the scene.

City News Service contributed to this report.