The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Orange County surpassed 10,000 over the weekend, a grim reminder that the new coronavirus is on the march even as state and local officials relax pandemic rules and expand the types of businesses that may welcome customers back.
And while the local overall case count is growing, new numbers from the Health Care Agency indicate the county is backpedaling in some other key metrics used to measure the fight against the coronavirus.
Today, some of those numbers are creeping back to levels they were at a month ago, when state officials let the county re-open some public areas and some businesses were allowed to accept customers.
Critically, the county’s rate of so-called “positive” tests — meaning the number of people who are found to be infected after being tested for coronavirus — is higher today than it was a month ago.
For the week ending Friday, June 19, the county’s positive test rate was 5.26%, the highest level since late April. On May 22, a day before the state let Orange County enter Stage 2 of the re-opening plan, the positive test rate for the previous seven days was 3.54%.
The growth of those positive tests — which hint at a broader spread of the disease — has come as the state has let Orange County and most other counties expand from Stage 2 re-opening to Stage 3, which includes letting the public go back to bars, gyms and many public swimming facilities.
To remain open, the state wants counties to show a positive test rate of 8% or less. Orange County’s highest positive test rate came on April 9, at 7.75%.
The Orange Cou