From the Humboldt County Joint Information Center:

Nearly a year since the first case of COVID-19 was reported in Humboldt County, data suggests that younger adults — the 20-29 and 30-39 age groups — remain the largest percentage of total cases. Because it will likely be months before people in these age groups are eligible to receive the vaccine, health officials encourage routine testing and continued safety precautions.

In the most recent weekly update on the Humboldt County Data Dashboard (humboldtgov.org/dashboard), residents age 20-29 made up about 24% of total cases, while those age 30-39 made up approximately 20% of total cases. Both groups have consistently maintained the highest rates since late September 2020, and the gap between them and other age groups has only increased since late November 2020.

Public Health officials have previously noted that people in these age groups tend to make up much of the essential workforce and often are unable to work from home. “While vaccines are part of our way out of the pandemic, they’re only one piece of the puzzle,” said Sam Gentle, Logistics Section Chief for the Emergency Operations Center. “We need to continue practicing these proven behaviors that are now part of life — mask wearing in public, staying at least 6 feet away from those outside your household, frequent hand washing and traveling only for essential purposes. Testing, even for those without symptoms, remains a great tool in identifying how much virus is circulating in our community.”

Testing continues to be available for free through the state-contracted COVID-19 testing provider OptumServe seven days a week at Redwood Acres in Eureka. Walk-ins are available at all OptumServe sites and turnaround time for results is averaging 48 to 72 hours. See the full schedule below:

  • Eureka – Seven days a week, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Redwood Acres, 3750 Harris St.)
  • Arcata – Mondays, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Arcata Community Center, 321 M.L.K. Jr. Pkwy.)
  • Garberville – Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (SoHum Health Sprowl Creek Campus, 286 Sprowl Creek Road)
  • • Fortuna – Wednesdays, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (River Lodge Conference Center, 1800 Riverwalk Dr.)
  • Hoopa – Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (Tsewenaldin Inn, 12482 CA-96)
  • McKinleyville – Fridays, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Azalea Hall, 1620 Pickett Road)

To schedule an appointment:

  • • Go to lhi.care/covidtesting, or
  • • Call 888-634-1123.

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CORRECTION: The headline slapped on this JIC press release originally stated that young adults represent the majority of COVID-positive cases. While that may in fact be true, depending on your definition of “young” and/or “adult,” the statistics cited for people in their 20s and 30s amount to only 44 percent of positive cases.