As Emergency Orders End, Lifesaving COVID-19 Tools Remain Readily Accessible Throughout Los Angeles County

1,028 New Positive Cases and 16 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

With recent decisions to end federal, state and local emergency orders related to COVID-19, Los Angeles County residents are reminded to continue taking sensible steps to protect themselves and others against severe illness and help keep hospitalization and death rates low.

During this new phase, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) is committed to ensuring easy access to free lifesaving preventative services, including testing, vaccinations and boosters, and treatment.

One of the most effective ways to prevent severe illness is to get the updated bivalent booster, which has been shown to offer boosted individuals increased protection against hospitalizations and deaths when compared to individuals who were vaccinated but had not received the updated booster.

For the 30-day period ending Feb. 14, vaccinated people in Los Angeles County who had not received the bivalent booster, formulated to protect against Omicron strains, were 1.5 times more likely to be hospitalized compared to people who has received the updated bivalent booster. When compared to those who had received the bivalent booster, unvaccinated people were five times more likely to be hospitalized.

When looking at COVID-19 deaths based on vaccination status, for the 30-day period ending Feb. 7, unvaccinated Los Angeles County residents were over six times more likely to die compared to people who had received the bivalent booster. People who had been vaccinated against COVID-19, yet not received the updated bivalent booster, were more than 1.5 times more likely to die from a COVID-19 infection than those who were boosted.

For the seventh consecutive week, Los Angeles County remains in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Low COVID-19 Community Level. This includes a 7-day case rate of 62 new cases per 100,000 people, a decrease from the 69 new cases per 100,000 people a week prior.  The 7-day total for new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 people is currently 6.9, stable from the 7.0 reported the week before. And the 7-day average of the proportion of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients is 3.8%, similar to the 3.9% the week prior.

To keep the community in the Low COVID-19 Level, residents, workers and businesses are asked to continue to take sensible steps to protect themselves and those most vulnerable. This includes staying up-to-date on vaccines and boosters, testing before gatherings, seeking therapeutics when a COVID-19 infection is confirmed, and staying home when sick.

Find a location to get boosted at VaccinateLACounty.com, VacunateLosAngeles.com (en español). Telehealth services to connect residents to COVID-19 vaccinations, boosters and medication may be accessed by calling 833-540-0473, 8:00 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.; 7 days a week.

“I would like to extend my deepest sympathies and wishes of comfort to those who have lost a loved one to COVID-19,” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.Ed., Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “At Public Health, we are acutely aware that the pandemic is not over and that there are people within our county who continue to feel the hardships of COVID-19 every day. As we enter this new phase, residents of Los Angeles County are reminded that there is no change in their access to lifesaving tools. We will work with federal and state officials in the coming weeks and months to make sure this remains true. Vaccines, therapeutics and testing are the resources that got us to this place where there is less severe illness from COVID, and this is where we hope to stay.”

Today, Public Health reported 16 additional deaths and 1,028 new positive cases. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 35,720. There are 643 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized.

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)

· COVID-19 Locations & Demographics (data by demographic characteristics and geography, active outbreaks, and citations)

· COVID-19 Response Plan

· COVID-19 Vaccinations

· Skilled Nursing Facility Metrics

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: