19 New Deaths and 245 New Confirmed Cases of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

 

This weekend at all the County-run vaccination sites, the Department of Health Services vaccination sites, and the L.A. City vaccination sites, everyone 18 years and older coming to get their first vaccine will have a chance to enter the Los Angeles Lakers 2021-22 Season Ticket Vaccination Sweepstakes to win a pair (2) of season tickets for next season. For additional information, visit: http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/vaccine/sweepstakes.htm. With millions of residents still needing to get vaccinated, this is an exciting opportunity that allows those still not protected to get vaccinated and perhaps be the lucky person who gets to watch the Lakers pursue a championship.

With nearly 4 million people in L.A. County that have received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine (or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine), Public Health has good information to understand the level of protection that fully vaccinated people have from becoming infected, getting sick, or dying from COVID-19.

Among these fully vaccinated people, 933 people were identified who tested positive for a COVID-19 infection contracted more than two weeks after they were fully vaccinated. That means that about 0.03% of all vaccinated people tested positive for COVID-19. This includes people who were tested as a matter of routine requirement by their workplace, including asymptomatic people. Of fully vaccinated people, 71 of them, or 0.002%, were hospitalized for infections contracted while fully vaccinated. And 12 people died of their infections, or 0.00036% of vaccinated County residents.

On a review of the charts of the 12 people who died, Public Health found that four had severely weakened immune systems. This finding is a signal to people whose immune systems are suppressed may need to take additional steps to protect themselves in seasons and situations where COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses spread more easily.

These are real-world data that were collected by matching the immunization records of people fully vaccinated with those of people who tested positive, were hospitalized, and died. The DPH team uses a very sophisticated matching algorithm to find as many of these breakthrough cases as possible.

And the news from the analysis is very good: these numbers show the vaccine is working extraordinarily well to prevent infection, illness, and death in almost everyone vaccinated. This data is also shedding light on the need to gather more information on those whose immune systems are suppressed, to find out if they need to take additional precautions beyond the vaccine.

“For all the families, friends and coworkers mourning the passing of a loved one to COVID-19, we wish you healing and peace,” said Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “Our transmission levels in L.A. County continue to remain low and stable, and one reason why is because the vaccines are so powerful and effective. I’d like to encourage the 40% of County residents who are fully vaccinated to talk to someone in their life who isn’t already vaccinated and tell them about your positive story. This could be a family member, neighbor, friend, or co-worker. If every single fully vaccinated person in L.A. County helped just one unvaccinated person get their first dose we’d have 3.9 million more vaccinated people, and we’d reach the level of community immunity we need to insulate and protect all of us as we fully re-open.”

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) has confirmed 19 new deaths and 245 new cases of COVID-19. Of the 19 new deaths reported today, seven people that passed away were over the age of 80, seven people who died were between the ages of 65 and 79, one person who died was between the ages of 50 and 64, and four people who died were between the ages of 30 and 49.

To date, Public Health identified 1,238,121 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 24,140 deaths. Testing results are available for nearly 6,672,000 individuals with 17% of people testing positive. Today’s daily test positivity rate is 0.5%. There are 356 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 23% of these people are in the ICU.

COVID-19 vaccinations are available at County-run sites and many community sites without an appointment. Anyone 12 and older living or working in L.A. County can get vaccinated. For now, only the Pfizer vaccine is approved for children, so make sure to go to a site that administers the Pfizer vaccine for children and teens. Teens 12 to 17 years old need to be accompanied by a parent, guardian, or responsible adult.

COVID-19 vaccines are free to everyone who wants one; you should never be sent a bill or be charged a co-pay for a COVID vaccine, regardless of whether you are insured or whether you got vaccinated at your doctor’s office, by a provider outside your network, or at a city or county site. If you get a bill from your insurance carrier, contact them to clarify what the charge is for. If you are billed at a vaccine site, you should report this to the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs.

To find a vaccination site near you, to make an appointment at vaccination sites, and much more, visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish). If you don’t have internet access, can’t use a computer, or you’re over 65, you can call 1-833-540-0473 for help finding an appointment or scheduling a home-visit if you are homebound. Vaccinations are always free and open to eligible residents and workers regardless of immigration status.

Sensible masking and distancing requirements are still in effect in L.A. County and throughout California. It’s critical that as the County gets more people vaccinated, we protect those who cannot yet get vaccinated from the virus and its dangerous variants by wearing masks at large indoor and outdoor events, in crowded outdoor spaces, at worksites, on public transportation, and at all retail and business establishments that are open to the public.

The Health Officer Order remains in effect across L.A. County and businesses, residents and visitors are urged to continue to abide by the required safety modifications. These actions will help make sure the County continues to see the low transmission rates that keep us moving forward on the recovery journey.

County Reopening Protocols, COVID-19 Vaccine Dashboard, COVID-19 Surveillance Interactive Dashboard, Roadmap to Recovery, Recovery Dashboard, and additional actions you can take to protect yourself, your family and your community are on the Public Health website, www.publichealth.lacounty.gov.

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