As COVID-19 Cases and Hospitalizations Rise, Boosters and Masking in Indoor Public Spaces Strongly Recommended - 4,744 New Positive Cases and 14 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

LA County is experiencing large increases in the number of reported COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. The 7-day average case count in the county is 3,053, a nearly 44% increase from one week ago when the 7-day average of 2,121 cases was reported. And over the past seven days, the average number of daily COVID-positive patients in LA County hospitals is 1,056, an increase of 39% from last week when the average number of COVID-positive patients per day was 760.

The county’s case rate is now 185 new cases per 100,000 people, and the COVID-19 hospital admission rate is 11.9 per 100,000 people, moving the CDC community level designation from low to medium. While moving into the Medium Community Level will not change required mitigation strategies in LA County, it does signal that case rates and hospitalizations are elevated and the county could be in the High Community Level as soon as next week if the case rate reaches 200 cases per 100,000 people.

Emerging strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are likely contributing to higher COVID-19 case rates and hospitalizations across Los Angeles County. With high prevalence of the new dominant strains BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 (descendant of BA.5), all residents should follow common sense precautions that work to prevent transmission of respiratory viruses, including wearing a high-quality mask that fits well in indoor public spaces and getting the new updated Fall COVID-19 booster.

Current county data shows that the subvariant Omicron BA.5 is rapidly losing dominance. The subvariants BQ.1 and BQ.1.1. now account for the second and third greatest number of sequenced specimens respectively, and combined, the BQ strains make up 38% of specimens, surpassing BA.5, which is at about 36%.

With mounting evidence that the new bivalent booster, specifically formulated to provide protection against BA.4 and BA.5, provides significant additional protection against symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, increasing the number of people boosted can mitigate the waning immunity of the monovalent doses. Unfortunately, only 16% of eligible LA County residents have received the updated bivalent booster – and six million residents are currently eligible who have not yet taken advantage of this additional defense. Everyone in LA County who is 5 years or older, and received their primary series or last booster more than two months ago, is eligible for the updated bivalent booster.

Within people age 65 and older, who statistically are more likely to have severe outcomes from COVID-19, uptake, while double that of the general population, remains concerningly low. Nearly 70% of older eligible residents, or about 880,000 people, have not yet received the updated booster.

The updated Fall COVID-19 boosters, plus flu vaccines, are readily available at Public Health sites, pharmacies, and other locations across the county. Seniors and residents who can’t easily leave their home can contact Public Health telehealth services at (833) 540-0473, seven days a week, from 8:00 am to 8:30 pm to arrange for at-home COVID-19 Fall booster and primary series vaccinations or transportation to a vaccination center.

Telehealth services can also be used to speak to a provider about therapeutics if you have tested positive for COVID-19 and are having symptoms. Taken within 5 days of symptom onset, Paxlovid can decrease the risk of hospitalization. Insurance is not required, and callers can be assisted in multiple languages.

Residents can also go to VaccinateLACounty.com to find nearby vaccination sites, request a mobile vaccination team for your worksite or community event, or an in-home visit if you or someone you know is homebound.

“I want to acknowledge the loss felt in local communities, particularly over the holidays, and to send my condolences to those who are grieving a loved one who has died,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “While there still is uncertainty about what the impact of COVID-19 will be this winter, there is mounting evidence that we are entering another COVID-19 surge. In some ways this surge is likely to be different – we know more about COVID, have tools to help mitigate severe outcomes, and we are more aware of symptoms and when to take action. On the flip side, this will be the first winter where we are facing rising levels of COVID, with emerging new strains we know less about, along with unusually high flu and RSV activity. There is a common line of thinking that the pandemic is over, that COVID-19 is no longer of concern. But given both the increases in hospitalizations and the lack of certainty in the winter trajectory for COVID-19, it’s important to continue common-sense mitigation strategies that we know work to limit transmission and illness, including masking and being up-to-date on vaccines and boosters.”

Today, Public Health reported 14 additional deaths and 4,744 new positive cases. Of the 14 new deaths reported today, one person was between the ages of 30 to 49, one person was between the ages of 50-64, five people were between the ages of 65-79, and six people were aged 80 years or older. For information on the one death reported by the City of Long Beach, visit longbeach.gov. Of the 14 newly reported deaths, 12 had underlying health conditions. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 34,213.

Public Health has reported a total of 3,552,019 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County. Today’s positivity rate is 12.2%.

There are 1,171 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 12,736,245 individuals, with 25% of people testing positive.

A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov including:

COVID-19 Daily Data (cases, deaths, testing, testing positivity rate, mortality rate, and hospitalizations)
Gender, Age, Race/Ethnicity and City/Community Cases and Deaths
Recovery Metrics
Contact Tracing Metrics
Skilled Nursing Facility Metrics
Citations due to Health Officer Order Noncompliance
Outbreaks:

Residential Congregate Settings
Non-Residential Settings
Homeless Service Settings

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health:
http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/
California Department of Public Health:
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Immunization/nCOV2019.aspx
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Spanish https://espanol.cdc.gov/enes/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
World Health Organization https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus
LA County residents can also call 2-1-1

For more information:

	Total Cases
Laboratory Confirmed Cases	3,552,019
-- Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)	3,359,846
-- Long Beach	154,699
-- Pasadena	37,474
Deaths	34,213
-- Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas)	32,438
-- Long Beach	1,339
-- Pasadena	436
Age Group (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- 0 to 4	105,988
- 5 to 11	277,267
- 12 to 17	271,718
- 18 to 29	729,895
- 30 to 49	1,080,459
- 50 to 64	574,539
- 65 to 79	238,034
- over 80	79,554
- Under Investigation	2,392
Gender (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Female	1,727,647
- Male	1,543,673
- Other	1,648
- Under Investigation	86,878
Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	6,400
- Asian	244,348
- Black	173,849
- Hispanic/Latino	1,448,609
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	17,017
- White	460,573
- Other	382,419
- Under Investigation	626,631
Hospitalization (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Hospitalized (Ever)	161,042
Deaths Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	77
- Asian	4,143
- Black	3,032
- Hispanic/Latino	16,234
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	113
- White	8,398
- Other	362
- Under Investigation	79
CITY / COMMUNITY**	Cases	Case Rate
City of Agoura Hills	6127	29340
City of Alhambra	23536	27139
City of Arcadia	12322	21335
City of Artesia	5582	33236
City of Avalon	66	1706
City of Azusa	16811	33595
City of Baldwin Park	28187	36717
City of Bell	16229	44669
City of Bell Gardens	16354	37970
City of Bellflower	28855	37120
City of Beverly Hills	10915	31619
City of Bradbury	67	6268
City of Burbank	30619	28568
City of Calabasas	5486	22555
City of Carson	32878	35034
City of Cerritos	12301	24569
City of Claremont	9240	25326
City of Commerce*	5442	41641
City of Compton	38818	38855
City of Covina	18230	37180
City of Cudahy	11724	48154
City of Culver City	10823	27149
City of Diamond Bar	12583	21878
City of Downey	44205	38687
City of Duarte	6877	31236
City of El Monte	40438	34483
City of El Segundo	3848	22924
City of Gardena	20764	33867
City of Glendale	56673	27445
City of Glendora	15091	28601
City of Hawaiian Gardens	4912	33470
City of Hawthorne	27942	31471
City of Hermosa Beach	4452	22633
City of Hidden Hills	376	19894
City of Huntington Park	25623	43075
City of Industry	531	121510
City of Inglewood	36226	31894
City of Irwindale	639	43797
City of La Canada Flintridge	4261	20592
City of La Habra Heights	177	3245
City of La Mirada	13268	26751
City of La Puente	15482	38042
City of La Verne	8803	26450
City of Lakewood	25078	31206
City of Lancaster*	61021	37768
City of Lawndale	10098	30041
City of Lomita	5634	27179
City of Lynwood*	29367	40761
City of Malibu	2758	21279
City of Manhattan Beach	6918	19217
City of Maywood	12363	44076
City of Monrovia	10952	28227
City of Montebello	23944	37195
City of Monterey Park	16244	26090
City of Norwalk	40374	37515
City of Palmdale	63430	39901
City of Palos Verdes Estates	2066	15279
City of Paramount	22193	39614
City of Pico Rivera	26234	40810
City of Pomona	62140	39851
City of Rancho Palos Verdes	7056	16506
City of Redondo Beach	14513	21126
City of Rolling Hills	265	13660
City of Rolling Hills Estates	1415	17441
City of Rosemead	14498	26193
City of San Dimas*	10464	30316
City of San Fernando	12230	49691
City of San Gabriel	10571	25812
City of San Marino	2241	16879
City of Santa Clarita	69354	31464
City of Santa Fe Springs	7633	41565
City of Santa Monica	24966	27006
City of Sierra Madre	2195	19975
City of Signal Hill	3818	32364
City of South El Monte	7832	37501
City of South Gate	45252	46103
City of South Pasadena	5957	22865
City of Temple City	9291	25486
City of Torrance	31885	21361
City of Vernon	351	167943
City of Walnut	7043	23068
City of West Covina	37476	34625
City of West Hollywood	10623	28749
City of Westlake Village	368	4402
City of Whittier	29490	33729
Los Angeles	1451696	35892
Los Angeles - Adams-Normandie	3059	37296
Los Angeles - Alsace	4287	34448
Los Angeles - Angeles National Forest	6	15000
Los Angeles - Angelino Heights	782	31255
Los Angeles - Arleta	16169	47044
Los Angeles - Atwater Village	4687	31958
Los Angeles - Baldwin Hills	9588	30805
Los Angeles - Bel Air	2284	27097
Los Angeles - Beverly Crest	3163	25253
Los Angeles - Beverlywood	3933	29857
Los Angeles - Boyle Heights*	38751	44601
Los Angeles - Brentwood	8022	25915
Los Angeles - Brookside	137	23580
Los Angeles - Cadillac-Corning	2270	31878
Los Angeles - Canoga Park	24244	37133
Los Angeles - Carthay	4025	28023
Los Angeles - Central	16524	42378
Los Angeles - Century City	3493	27306
Los Angeles - Century Palms/Cove	15483	45854
Los Angeles - Chatsworth	12163	32819
Los Angeles - Cheviot Hills	2382	25973
Los Angeles - Chinatown	2651	33051
Los Angeles - Cloverdale/Cochran	4967	34130
Los Angeles - Country Club Park	4632	30568
Los Angeles - Crenshaw District	4995	36120
Los Angeles - Crestview	3680	32372
Los Angeles - Del Rey	8043	26867
Los Angeles - Downtown*	15281	55553
Los Angeles - Eagle Rock	12904	32595
Los Angeles - East Hollywood	9027	30823
Los Angeles - Echo Park	4297	30142
Los Angeles - El Sereno	16240	38844
Los Angeles - Elysian Park	1725	30200
Los Angeles - Elysian Valley	3436	33782
Los Angeles - Encino	14355	31779
Los Angeles - Exposition	1223	36771
Los Angeles - Exposition Park	17197	38286
Los Angeles - Faircrest Heights	1187	32972
Los Angeles - Figueroa Park Square	3579	41039
Los Angeles - Florence-Firestone	22077	46532
Los Angeles - Glassell Park	10414	32952
Los Angeles - Gramercy Place	3907	36297
Los Angeles - Granada Hills	20443	35131
Los Angeles - Green Meadows	9731	45250
Los Angeles - Hancock Park	4469	26228
Los Angeles - Harbor City	8890	30581
Los Angeles - Harbor Gateway	14977	34351
Los Angeles - Harbor Pines	597	24782
Los Angeles - Harvard Heights	5952	33002
Los Angeles - Harvard Park	17273	45533
Los Angeles - Highland Park	16370	33829
Los Angeles - Historic Filipinotown	5125	36950
Los Angeles - Hollywood	20525	30071
Los Angeles - Hollywood Hills	7241	24601
Los Angeles - Hyde Park	11218	39305
Los Angeles - Jefferson Park	3022	37433
Los Angeles - Koreatown	15547	30076
Los Angeles - Lafayette Square	1567	34372
Los Angeles - Lake Balboa	15478	36673
Los Angeles - Lakeview Terrace	5580	42488
Los Angeles - Leimert Park	5399	35438
Los Angeles - Lincoln Heights	12223	37497
Los Angeles - Little Armenia	2906	36212
Los Angeles - Little Bangladesh	8404	29651
Los Angeles - Little Tokyo	1409	44973
Los Angeles - Longwood	1663	38638
Los Angeles - Los Feliz	5466	25296
Los Angeles - Manchester Square	3066	35918
Los Angeles - Mandeville Canyon	754	24136
Los Angeles - Mar Vista	10257	24151
Los Angeles - Marina Peninsula	927	21261
Los Angeles - Melrose	25055	32247
Los Angeles - Mid-city	4444	29568
Los Angeles - Miracle Mile	4694	26100
Los Angeles - Mission Hills	11344	47024
Los Angeles - Mt. Washington	7979	33046
Los Angeles - North Hills	24106	39149
Los Angeles - North Hollywood	56568	37358
Los Angeles - Northridge	24274	34778
Los Angeles - Pacific Palisades	4739	22258
Los Angeles - Pacoima	37323	48485
Los Angeles - Palisades Highlands	878	22829
Los Angeles - Palms	11318	25795
Los Angeles - Panorama City	32107	42667
Los Angeles - Park La Brea	3029	22305
Los Angeles - Pico-Union	15831	37835
Los Angeles - Playa Del Rey	563	17616
Los Angeles - Playa Vista	3219	29405
Los Angeles - Porter Ranch	9954	27970
Los Angeles - Rancho Park	2125	32393
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