Senior facilities have become a huge focus as deaths from COVID-19 rise throughout the state and around the Bay Area.
New numbers were released Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Santa Clara Public Health Office.
California has more than 1,200 skilled nursing facilities spread throughout the state. Health officials said they are tracking confirmed cases of COVID-19 in nearly 200 of those facilities.
Santa Clara County said it has 164 coronavirus cases in senior homes and seven of those patients have died.
Medical experts are urging people not to move seniors at this time because it could put them at greater risk for becoming infected.
"Right now the county is taking very seriously any cases or suspected cases in a congregate setting where people are living beyond a single household," said Dr. Sarah Rudman, Santa Clara County Public Health.
The South Bay updates comes on the same day Alameda County announced nine people have now died at a Hayward nursing facility.
Canyon Springs in San Jose has not had a death, but it announced Friday 20 residents have tested positive for COVID-19, along with 15 staff members.
The county said despite those recent deaths among seniors, they are seeing evidence that social distancing is helping flatten the curve.
"That peak is lower than anticipated and later than anticipated, which gives us a chance to better prepare hospitals to meet that demand," Rudman said.
Meanwhile, Newsom said nursing facilities are a top priority for the state now.
Santa Clara County officials said they are doing everything they can to support nursing facilities and they expect to see more cases at more facilities in the coming days.
