NEWS UPDATES TO STAY IN THE KNOW

The COVID-19 Situation Summary is rapidly evolving and information will be updated on the COVID-19 Situation Summary as it becomes available.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) maintains a page on their coronavirus website that is updated every day and features the latest news they have released. Click here to visit their “What’s New” page.

CDC Dental Settings resource page 

You can view daily updates from the California Department of Public Health on their website by clicking here.

Daily updates from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health can be found on their main coronavirus web page by clicking here and scrolling down to the “Latest News” section.

The Orange County Health Care Agency (health department) also offers daily updates on their main coronavirus website. You can visit it by clicking here and scrolling down to the “Latest News” section.

Similarly, the Long Beach Health and Human Services department offers their latest community news and announcement on their main coronavirus web page. You can visit it by clicking here and scrolling down to the “Latest News” section.

This guidance is intended for us all, whether you own a business, or want to ensure the cleanliness and safety of your practice and home. Reopening requires all of us to move forward together by practicing social distancing and other daily habits to reduce our risk of exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19.

COVID-19 Updates from Local Sites:

• Sign up for Alert Long Beach
• Long Beach Dept. of Health & Human Services
• Follow #COVID19LongBeach  @LongBeachCity Twitter Feed

COVID-19 County, State, Federal Sites:

• Follow @CountyofLA and visit covid19.lacounty.gov for the most up-to-date information about the COVID-19 response in Los Angeles County
• https://occovid19.ochealthinfo.com/
• Department of Mental Health: dmh.lacounty.gov/covid-19-information
• Department of Public Health: ph.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus
• State Information: California Department of Public Health (CDPH)
• Federal Information: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

LOCAL Testing Sites: L.A. County is continuing to add more COVID-19 testing sites to serve all residents of our communities. Testing is available by appointment only! As of today, the following testing sites are accepting appointments and are fully operational. Please see the list of Frequently Asked Questions regarding COVID-19 Testing for more information. 

Register for Testing: Anyone interested in getting tested must first register on the Website. At this time, testing is limited to residents of L.A. County who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19. 

HOW TO PROPERLY PUT ON AND TAKE OFF A DISPOSABLE RESPIRATOR

For those treating emergency patients of record and for our specialists taking the most serious of dental emergencies, here is a refresher on How to Properly Put on and Take off a Disposable Respirator

CDC has posted strategies for optimizing PPE: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/ppe-strategy/index.html

Updated May 29, 2020: CDC Interim Reopening Guidance for Dental Settings

CDC has updated the Interim Infection Prevention and Control Guidance for Dental Settings During the COVID-19 Response with guidance for resuming non-emergency dental care during the COVID-19 pandemic. These updates include expanded recommendations for provision of dental care to both patients with COVID-19 and patients without COVID-19, as well as new information regarding patient management; administrative, engineering, and work practice controls; sterilization and disinfection; and considerations for the use of test-based strategies to inform patient care.

Dental health care personnel should apply the updated interim guidance as well as the guidance found in the Framework for Healthcare Systems Providing Non-COVID-19 Clinical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic as they make determinations how and when to resume non-emergency dental care.

Dental settings should balance the need to provide necessary services while minimizing risk to patients and dental healthcare personnel. Dental health care personnel should stay informed and regularly consult with the state or local health department for region-specific information and recommendations, and should monitor trends in local case counts and deaths, especially for populations at higher risk for severe illness. As a reminder, dental health care personnel are licensed by their state regulatory body and should practice according to their state dental practice acts or other relevant regulations. Interim guidance is based on what is currently known about the transmission and severity of COVID-19.

?You can find the most up-to-date information about infection prevention and control practices on CDC’s COVID-19 page. CDC will update this guidance as additional information becomes available.

UPDATE May 30, 2020: Resuming Deferred and Preventive Dental Care in LA County 

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Oral Health Program (LAC OHP) is working with the California Department of Public Health, Office of Oral Health (CDPH OOH) to address deferred dental treatment during this COVID-19 pandemic.

CDA Resources and Updates

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