[ad_1]
Los Angeles County on Wednesday added more than 800 people to the list of those who died from COVID-19, highlighting the massive toll from the fall and winter wave.
The addition means a jump in the total number of deaths, which this week reached 20,000, with deaths from the disease surpassing 50,000 in California.
Most of the deaths occurred during the fall and winter surge, which overwhelmed hospitals and prompted new home support orders.
This is what we know:
How were the additional deaths found?
The backlog of 806 new deaths from COVID-19 in LA County, most of which occurred in December and January, was uncovered following extensive checks of death records, the director of health said on Wednesday. public Barbara Ferrer.
“It was a time, as you all know, when huge numbers of deaths occurred across the county. And not all of them have been reported [the Department of] Public health due to the volume of files. “
The county typically identifies deaths from COVID-19 through daily reports from healthcare providers. But the county is also performing an audit of the causes of death listed on death certificates. This audit is how the additional deaths were found, Ferrer said.
“The 806 deaths reported today,” she said, “reflect the deaths associated with COVID that occurred during the outbreak that were not reported to public health via the death report form, but they have were subsequently identified through our review of the death certificate, and we still do these reviews. “
The additional deaths represent about 8% of total deaths from COVID-19 in LA County in December and January, she added.
“It is heartbreaking to report this large number of additional deaths associated with COVID-19,” Ferrer said. “And it’s a devastating reminder of the terrible toll the winter wave has left so many families across the county.”
What are the current prospects?
Despite the huge backlog reported on Wednesday, deaths and coronavirus cases have plummeted in recent weeks.
California records around 6,000 new cases of coronavirus one day now, compared to 40,000 a day six weeks ago. The number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals in California on Thursday was 6,185, from a high of 21,936 on Jan.6.
The number of people in intensive care units statewide was 1,778 on Thursday, down 63% from a high of 4,868 on Jan.10 and the lowest total since Dec.1.
The situation is also improving considerably in LA County.
Ferrer said Monday that the daily number of coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County was reaching levels not seen since the winter wave. Over the past seven days, LA County has recorded an average of 1,956 new cases of coronavirus per day, down 87% from early January, when there were more than 15,000 new cases per day.
“We continue to make progress in reducing the average daily number of new cases of COVID-19,” Ferrer said.
LA County had also seen a drop in deaths before the reported backlog. In early January, the county recorded an average of 241 COVID-19 deaths per day over a seven-day period; for the most recent seven-day period, the county recorded an average of 120 deaths per day, a decrease of 50%.
Additionally, the county’s positive test result rate, which rose to over 20% around Jan.1, fell below 5%, Ferrer said.
The effective transmission rate in LA County has dropped from 0.81 a week ago to 0.76, meaning that for every 100 people infected, the virus is transmitted to 76 people.
What are the concerns for the future?
Overall, there is growing optimism that vaccines can fight COVID-19 and significantly slow the spread over time. One of the main problems is that vaccine stocks remain limited.
And officials are bracing for an increase in variants of the virus that are more transmissible, including a California strain that looks increasingly dangerous.
Officials were investigating a cluster of four coronavirus cases at USC, two of which are confirmed to be the most contagious and potentially deadly variant first identified in Britain, B.1.1.7.
The other two cases are still awaiting laboratory confirmation, Ferrer said.
“All of these cases were detected as part of USC’s routine screening and surveillance program,” she said Wednesday. “The individuals are doing well and they are isolated. Close contacts have been identified, notified and are in quarantine. “
Scientific research suggests that currently available COVID-19 vaccines are effective against the UK variant.
“But with the vaccine supply still very limited, local transmission of the potentially more infectious UK variant underscores the need for each of our residents to continue to use all the tools we have to prevent transmission,” said Ferrer, “Including not meeting with people you don’t live with, and walking away and masking yourself whenever you are away from home and around others. “
There are now 18 confirmed cases of the British variant in LA County, more than 200 in California and more than 1,800 nationwide, with 45 states reporting cases.
Los Angeles County Director of Health Services Dr Christina Ghaly noted on Tuesday that this week could see an increase in cases resulting from rallies over Super Bowl weekend.
“An increase in behaviors that facilitate transmission can still very easily lead to an increase in the number of hospitalized patients in just a few weeks,” Ghaly said. “It can happen very quickly, and as we all know it’s very difficult to change things and start forcing those numbers down.”
[ad_2]
Source link