COVID-19 effects in the area

More than 205 days have passed since the United States learned of COVID-19. The state of Colorado and El Paso County have experienced the full spectrum of life from before COVID-19 to stay-at-home orders from the governor.Currently, the state and county are in a less restrictive atmosphere where businesses can hire and operate, restaurants are open and residents can go about their lives as long as they have a mask.To provide current statistics about the virusí effect on county residents, El Paso County Public Health has created a website with a dashboard displaying nine different views of how the county is fairing. There are also numerous resources containing COVID-19 guidance for county residents and schools.According to the Census Bureau, as of July 2019, El Paso County is home to 720,403 people. The county dashboard shows between the dates of March 1 and Sept. 21, there have been 97,383 (13.5%) COVID-19 tests administered; 6,754 (0.94%) positive cases; 568 (0.08%) hospitalizations; 6098 (90.3%) recoveries; and 170 (0.02%) deaths from the virus.Another graphic on the El Paso County Public Health dashboard illustrates the impact of COVID-19 on the Black Forest, Latigo/Elbert, and Falcon/Peyton communities. As of Sept. 21:

Black Forest	population: 17,807	tests: 2,457	cases: 136
Latigo/Elbert	population: 5,194	tests: 285	cases: 16
Falcon/Peyton	population:25,048	tests: 3,366	cases: 203

The Centers for Disease Control has issued guidance purporting the age populations of 60 years and older are the most at risk and susceptible to COVID-19 due to pre-existing health conditions.The data from the EPCPH dashboard tells a different story.The countyís 20-to-29-year-old population has the highest number of positive cases. The number of positive cases decreases as the age groups increase in age.From the county dashboard, as of September 21, the number of positive cases per age group are 0-9 years: 332; 10-19 years: 633; 20-29 years: 1655; 30-39 years: 1141; 40-49 years: 942; 50-59 years: 804; 60-69 years: 556; 70-79 years: 390; 80-89 years: 216; and 90+ years: 85.To view the El Paso County Public Health dashboard, visit https:/elpasocountyhealth.org/covid19data-dashboard.com