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One in 1,000 Californians has now died from COVID-19.
California surpassed 40,000 coronavirus deaths on Friday, another milestone that comes as the state emerges from a winter wave.
More than half – at least 22,500 Californians – have died from COVID-19 since November 1, on a cumulative toll of more than 40,100.
Only New York has suffered more coronavirus-related deaths than California. California – the most populous state in the country – has recorded about 101 deaths per 100,000 population, the 36th highest cumulative COVID-19 death rate among the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Many other large states have higher per capita deaths, including New York, New Jersey, Texas and Florida, according to The Times newspaper. New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, South Dakota and Rhode Island have double California’s death rate.
However, the loss of life is difficult to fully assume. The death toll exceeds the total population of Culver City or West Hollywood.
While there are encouraging signs that the worst wave of the pandemic has reached its peak, officials say they expect the death toll to continue to rise dramatically in the days ahead as more and more victims of the latest wave are losing their battle against COVID-19.
“We have a way to go before our hospitals are not stressed and fewer people die every day,” said Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.
Over the past week, an average of 539 Californians have died from COVID-19 each day – one of the highest rates of the pandemic, according to data compiled by The Times.
While other important parameters of COVID-19, such as newly confirmed infections and the number of people hospitalized with the disease, have fallen in recent weeks, the number of Californians who die each day has remained at or near high levels. .
This is to be expected, experts say, as the deaths represent the final phase of the multi-week devastation of COVID-19.
While many people infected with the coronavirus may experience only mild symptoms, if any, some – health officials have estimated between 10% and 12% – will end up getting sick enough to require care at the level of the body. hospital, usually about two weeks later. . And although some will eventually be released, others will continue to deteriorate over a period of days or weeks.
For this reason, there is a persistent lag in the time it takes for peaks in new infections to be fully reflected in the number of COVID-19 deaths. That’s why, even though California sees progress elsewhere, officials warn that the death toll will likely remain high for the near future.
“We expect the average daily mortality to continue to be very high,” said Dr. Christina Ghaly, Los Angeles County Director of Health Services.
But, she added earlier this week, that toll will “start to decline, thankfully, in the next one to two weeks if the transmission behavior remains the same.”
While virtually no part of the state has escaped, the pandemic has been particularly devastating in Los Angeles County. More than 16,000 LA County residents have died from COVID-19 – accounting for about 40% of total coronavirus-related deaths in California, even though LA County only accounts for about a quarter of the population of the state.
California’s recent progress, however, is promising – and paints a tantalizing picture of better days to come.
The seven-day moving average of new coronavirus cases statewide fell to 22,200 on Thursday, about half of what it was two weeks ago. Hospitalizations have also fallen – from about 21,000 two weeks ago to 15,705 on Thursday, according to the latest state data.
All the metrics move together. Fewer infections on the front-end means fewer people requiring more careful care, or getting worse to the point of dying in the days and weeks to come.
For this reason, officials and experts say it remains vital for residents to keep their guard up and not allow coronavirus transmission to rebound.
Measures like wearing masks in public, practicing good hand hygiene, and keeping a physical distance from those you don’t live with can help keep California on track and are especially important, say the researchers. responsible, as the state reopens closed sectors of its struggling economy.
“To continue reducing transmission, we must all commit to taking the necessary steps to slow the spread of COVID-19,” Ferrer said in a statement. “When more areas reopen, the risk of COVID-19 transmission increases because people interact more with non-household members. In order to prevent reopenings from leading to an increase in the number of cases, businesses and individuals must be more diligent, not less, in the application of public health measures.
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