Coronavirus: Riverside County Death Toll Climbs; Supervisors Form Economic Recovery Task Force
RIVERSIDE (CBSLA) -- Riverside County health officials reported seven additional coronavirus-related deaths Friday, bringing the death toll to 156. The total number of confirmed cases has jumped to 4,079, which is 48 more than Thursday. Officials said 214 county residents are currently hospitalized for the virus, and 85 are in intensive care units.
The number of recoveries has risen to 1,693, the Riverside University Health System reported.
Riverside County has the second-highest number of confirmed cases and deaths in California, behind only Los Angeles County.
On Wednesday, Riverside County's public health director Dr. Cameron Kaiser extended mandates requiring face coverings in public and social distancing until June 19.
However, Board of Supervisors Chair Manuel Perez said Thursday that he would ask the full board on Tuesday to terminate all remaining local public health orders amid evidence that the threat of the novel coronavirus recedes and the need for economic recovery grows.
"Our data and metrics show that we have conducted over 50,000 (COVID-19) tests at five locations, which is 2% of our county's population," Perez said. "We prepared for the expected hospital surge with two Federal Medical Stations that we have not had to use. Our hospital bed and ICU bed use have remained relatively consistent. These data explain why our original modeling has changed."
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If a majority of the board votes to rescind, the county will revert to alignment with only mandates issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom, which focus on staying in the home under voluntary quarantine, with exceptions for so-called "essential" businesses and meeting everyday needs for personal well-being.
Just a few days ahead of the board meeting, the board of supervisors announced an economic recovery task force to provide recommendations for restarting the local economy.
"As we continue to fight against the silent enemy, coronavirus, metrics demonstrate that we can now balance that with turning the corner towards economic opportunity," Perez said. "An important part of our efforts is making sure we are workforce ready and business ready once the state moves into the next phase in its roadmap."
The task force is made up of county business and community leaders to study how to support businesses in their recovery efforts. The task force is expected to be in place for 18 months and will identify both short and long-term strategies to assist the local economy.
So far, 51,228 people have been tested for the coronavirus in Riverside County.
The county is also seeking to expand testing, eyeing new sits in the San Gorgonio Pass and the San Jacinto Valley.
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
