SAN LUIS OBISPO — San Luis Obispo County Public Health officials reported the County’s 17th coronavirus-related death on Tuesday, the second in as many days.
The County has shifted to reporting COVID-19 deaths on its Twitter page @SLOPublicHealth and on its “Positive Case Details” webpage, instead of sending out a press release as had previously done for the first 15 deaths.
“Sadly, another SLO County resident has succumbed to COVID-19, bringing No. of COVID-19 deaths to 17. They were vulnerable to serious illness because they were in 90s & had chronic health conditions. Let’s all do our part to #SLOtheSpread & protect our most vulnerable neighbors,” read Tuesday’s post.
The County’s 16th COVID-19 death was reported on Monday, a resident who was in their 60s and had chronic health conditions.
As of Tuesday, 2,278 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in SLO County. The County reported 24 new cases on Tuesday and an increase of hospitalizations to 21, the highest for the County to date, with six in intensive care. North County accounted for 15 of Tuesday’s new cases, including 10 in Paso Robles.
Last week, the County revised its total COVID-19 deaths from 16 to 15. Public Health officials reclassified one death because it was determined that while COVID-19 may have contributed to their demise, it was not an underlying cause of death as thought initially.
Consistent with national standards, the County Public Health Department will continue to classify a known COVID-19 case as a COVID-19 death only if COVID-19 is listed on a death certificate as an underlying cause of death.
