SAN DIEGO — On Wednesday at 2:30 p.m., San Diego County gave a COVID-19 update. You can watch it all here.
The briefing comes after the San Diego Blood Bank issued a call Wednesday for more donations of all blood types, as supplies have fallen to "critically low" levels with area hospitals ramping up surgeries delayed by COVID-19.
According to the bank, summer is always a challenging time for blood centers to ensure an adequate blood supply due to schools being out of session. This year is especially challenging as many businesses and community groups are not able to host their normal blood drives due to work-from-home policies.
Chairman Greg Cox announced that FEMA extended the Great Plates Delivered program by a month. It was supposed to end on Wednesday, but will go on until July 10.
Cox said 31 San Diego County restaurants have prepared meals for more than 1,400 seniors.
“It’s a great program,” said Cox.
This week marks the reopening of many San Diego County businesses, such as gyms, aquariums, and bars.
“The dangers from coronavirus remain as real today as they did in March,” said Supervisor Nathan Fletcher.
8,837 people have tested positive for COVID-19 countywide and 305 people have died. As of Wednesday, 1,447 COVID-19 patients are hospitalized and 410 people are in the ICU for COVID-19 countywide.
As of June 9, the county has completed 203,579 COVID-19 tests.
Fletcher said there’s a backlog of negative results from state testing facilities, but more accurate numbers should be published later this week. The county also explained that illnesses that began in late May and early June may not yet be reported at this time.
There have been 101 outbreaks in congregate and community settings, according to Dr. Wilma Wooten.
Some people expressed concerns about neighboring Orange County and Arizona seeing an uptick in COVID-19 patients.
“Naturally, we are concerned,” said Wooten.
According to Dr. Eric McDonald, about 10% of the COVID-19 cases they’re seeing in San Diego County are asymptomatic people.
When asked about the possibility and preparation for a second wave of coronavirus in the fall, Wooten said it’s like a flu season in that you won’t know exactly how bad it’s going to be until the season arrives.
“We really don’t know what’s going to happen in the fall,” said Wooten.