Public Health Officials Confirm 11 New Cases Of Coronavirus In LA County; 2 Hospitalized

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Public health officials Saturday have confirmed 11 new cases of the coronavirus for Los Angeles County, bringing the county's total to 53 current cases.

In a news release, officials said that two of the cases were exposed during recent travel, while four of the cases had close contact with a confirmed case. The remaining five cases had an unknown origin of exposure at this time.

To date, the county has reported 53 total cases, eight of which are due to community transmission. Officials said two of the cases confirmed Saturday were hospitalized .

Amid growing transmission, officials are urging the public to continue to practice social distancing.

"As expected, we are seeing increased community spread, and as more testing occurs we will continue to see significantly more cases," said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Los Angeles County Public Health Director.

"Our healthcare providers are prepared to see more cases, but we must all do our part to slow the spread of COVID-19 in order to minimize strain on our healthcare system and other service providers. This means strictly adhering to social distancing requirements, practicing good hygiene such as frequent hand washing, and caring for the most vulnerable members of our community. Please do not call 911 to request testing for COVID-19 and please do not go to our emergency rooms unless you are seriously ill and require emergency care. If you have respiratory illness and want to know if you should be tested for COVID-19, it is best to call your health care provider or, if you don't have a provider, call 2-1-1 for help finding a clinician near you," she added.