California reports record daily increase in coronavirus cases as it becomes worst-hit state in the U.S., Newsom says

California reported more than 12,800 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, the highest reported daily tally the state has recorded so far, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday. 

California has now surpassed New York in total confirmed Covid-19 cases — more than 409,500 cases as of Wednesday — making it the state with the most cases in the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins University data. However, New York has reported more than four times the number of deaths, according to Johns Hopkins. 

“We’re a state, again, size of 21 states combined, so it’s not surprising now in some respects as we’ve begun to reopen key sectors of our economy,” Newsom said at a news briefing Wednesday. “People continue to mix and people continue to come in close contact with others that may have contracted this disease that our numbers would start to go up in total now.” 

Newsom said the state has average 9,420 additional cases based on a seven-day average, a trend line that is “certainly” continuing to increase. California also reported 115 new deaths on Tuesday but that figure has fluctuated daily, he said. 

While the state has increased its testing, the positivity rate, or the number of positive cases to total tests performed, now stands at around 7.4% over the last 14 days, a number that “continues to go up modestly.” The state has been adding more health-care personnel, contact tracers and personal protective equipment for months to help battle a potential outbreak, he said. 

Newsom has already made sweeping rollbacks to California’s reopening plan, ordering all bars and all dine-in restaurants, movie theaters, museums and other indoor businesses across the state to close. 

In addition to the statewide order, Newsom also ordered the closure of indoor operations for fitness centers, worship services, personal care services, malls, offices, hair salons and barbershops for all counties that have been on California’s monitoring list for three or more consecutive days.

San Francisco County was added to the list last week, joining other populated counties like Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties. Newsom said there are now 35 of the state’s 58 counties on the list, which measures the level of virus transmission, hospitalizations and hospital capacity. 

“What I’m afraid of is the complacency,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said during a news conference Friday. “People are tired of the virus, but the virus is not tired of us.”