COVID: Los Angeles County Reports 14,418 New COVID Cases, 102 Deaths As Virus Cases Rise

LOS ANGELES (KABC) – As the coronavirus vaccine rollout continued on Thursday, Los Angeles County again reported a string of grim figures including 14,418 new cases and 102 deaths.

According to the Department of Public Health, 20% of the 4,864 people hospitalized with COVID-19 across the county were in the ICU.

Meanwhile, deployment of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine continued after it was received by nine pre-designated sites across the county. The initial allocation was used to immunize frontline healthcare workers ahead of a second scheduled shipment of Pfizer’s vaccine next week.

In a statement, the health department expressed hope that a second vaccine, made by Moderna, will soon receive emergency use authorization from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Thursday’s new data was released hours after California officials announced that the southern California area’s intensive care capacity had fallen to 0%.

California also reported a staggering 52,000 new cases in a single day – the equivalent of the US average in mid-October – and a single-day record of 379 deaths. More than 16,000 people are in hospital with the coronavirus statewide, more than triple the number from a month ago.

Critical care unit capacity drops to 0% in Southern California as state reports 379 new deaths, shattering record

The new LA County cases bring its total to 580,325. Since the start of the pandemic, 8,664 deaths have been reported in the county.

In light of the numbers, a coalition of unions is calling on county leaders to enact a month-long shutdown that would include curfews and the temporary shutdown of non-essential businesses.

Supporters of the plan, and some county supervisors, say it would only work if workers and businesses are paid to make up for economic losses.

“What we’re doing just isn’t working,” said Kurt Peterson of Unite Here Local11. “So we have to follow the science, we have to look at the places where they have been most successful. In doing so, these places are places that have been locked down for some time in order to control the virus. “

California hospitals have nearly run out of intensive care beds for COVID-19 patients, ambulances are backing up to emergency rooms and tents to sort the sick rise as the country’s most populous state emerges as the last epicenter of the American epidemic. .

The Associated Press contributed to this report.