LOS Angeles County on Thursday, January 20 reported 102 additional COVID-19-related deaths, the highest number of fatalities reported in a single day since March 2021.
The number of new deaths doubled in the past week, according to the LA Department of Public Health.
Of the deaths, 90% were among residents who became ill with COVID after December 24, indicating the high likelihood of infection with the Omicron variant.
“As deaths often lag behind surges in cases and hospitalizations, we may see an even higher number of deaths in the coming weeks,” the department said in a release.
On Friday, January 21, the department reported an additional 65 deaths and 43,091 cases of COVID-19. Of the 65 new deaths reported, 10 were between the ages of 30 and 49, 16 were between the ages of 50 and 64, 15 were between the ages of 65-79, and 18 were over the age of 80 years old. Of the 65 newly reported deaths, 44 had underlying conditions.
Public Health has identified a total 2,428,744 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of LA County since the start of the pandemic. The positivity rate stands at 17.8%.
There are 4,792 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 10,804,700 individuals, with 20% of people testing positive.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have recognized that while many experience mild illness from COVID, there are others that will not do well if they become infected,” Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Director of Public Health said.
The department also released disaggregated data by race and ethnicity, finding that Asian residents have seen the steepest percent increase of 2,400%, or 2,300 cases per 100,000. For hospitalizations among Asian residents, it is 8 per 100,000. Latino and Black residents have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic in terms of positivity rates and hospitalizations — with Latino residents have the highest case rate with 3,600 cases per 100,000 people. Black residents have the second highest current case rate with nearly 2,700 cases per 100,000, with a 1,400% increase in just one month.
To keep workplaces and schools open, residents and workers are asked to:
- Adhere to masking requirements when indoors or at crowded outdoor spaces, regardless of vaccination status.
- Remain home when sick, isolate if positive and quarantine when in close contact.
- Residents are legally required to be isolated if they have a positive COVID test result and vaccinated. Close contacts with symptoms and unvaccinated close contacts need to be quarantined.
- Residents are also encourage to get vaccinated and boosted if they haven’t already. Vaccination sites can be found at www.VaccinateLACounty.com or by calling 1-833-540-0473. (AJPress)
