An uninsured 17-year-old in Los Angeles County who died on March 18 was turned away from an urgent-care center before rushing to a public hospital, according to Lancaster, California, Mayor R. Rex Parris.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health initially reported Tuesday that the teen tested positive for the coronavirus but later backtracked and said the CDC would evaluate his case further.

More than 27 million Americans do not have health insurance.

The US has more COVID-19 cases than any other nation.

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A 17-year-old was rushing to a public hospital in Los Angeles County when he went into cardiac arrest.

He was still alive upon arrival, Lancaster, California, Mayor R. Rex Parris said in a statement. But the medical staff were able to keep him alive for only another six hours.

Time was short, and the hospital was not his first stop. He went to an urgent-care center first and complained of respiratory symptoms, his family said, the Los Angeles Times reported. There, according to Parris, he was refused treatment because he didn’t have health insurance.

“He didn’t have insurance, so they did not treat him,” Parris said. The staff of the unknown clinic told him to go to Antelope Valley Hospital’s emergency room. “But by the time he got there, it was too late.”

Parris expressed frustration with the urgent-care center that turned the teen away because of his lack of health insurance. “When a kid comes in respiratory distress, stabilize him and call an ambulance; don’t ask for insurance,” Parris told CNN.

The county health department included him in the coronavirus death toll, then backtracked

The teen died on March 18. Six days later, on March 23, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health attributed the death to the coronavirus, which had made him the first known teenager to die from COVID-19 in the US. His father is also suspected of having the virus, according to the Los Angeles Times.

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But later that day, the county’s department of health said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would reevaluate the case, saying “there may be an alternate explanation for this fatality.”

“The juvenile fatality that the Los Angeles County Department Public Health reported earlier today will require further evaluation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” the county said in a statement. “Though early tests indicated a positive result for COVID-19, the case is complex, and there may be an alternate explanation for this fatality. Patient privacy prevents our offering further details at this time.”

On Wednesday, Barbara Ferrer, the county public-health director, removed the boy from the death toll and said there were “extenuating circumstances that pointed to an alternative diagnosis,” according to The Mercury News.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom rebuked the county for backtracking.

“We all have been reminded in this moment it’s not just speed, it’s accuracy that must be front and center,” he said.

Local authorities say he didn’t have preexisting conditions

Both Parris and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said the boy did not have preexisting health conditions, which are known to increase the severity of COVID-19.

“He had been sick for a few days; he had no previous health conditions. On the Friday before he died, he was healthy; he was socializing with his friends,” Parris said. “By Wednesday, he was dead.”

“Once you go into respiratory issues … and you have a fever, that is the time to get medical treatment without delay,” Parris added.

On Friday afternoon, Los Angeles County had 1,216 coronavirus cases and 21 deaths from the disease. The US has more than 97,000 cases, the most of any country. More than 27 million Americans, 8.5% of the population, are uninsured.

Healthcare workers in California said authorities have not counted all coronavirus cases. One anonymous emergency-room doctor told BuzzFeed News, “The numbers are grossly underreported. I know for a fact that we’ve had three deaths in one county where only one is listed on the website.”