Public Health Encourages Sensible Precautions to Protect Those at Risk as COVID-19 Continues to Outpace Other Respiratory Illnesses
814 New Positive Cases and 11 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County
As hospitalizations and deaths remain higher for COVID-19 than other respiratory illnesses, residents still need to take sensible protections to keep those at higher risk safe.
Since October, 69 Los Angeles County residents are known to have died from flu-related illness, a likely undercount since testing and reporting for flu are less robust than they are for COVID-19. Using U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) modeling data, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) estimates that the true number of flu-associated deaths since October is likely closer to 540. Even using the higher flu figure, there has been more than triple the number of COVID-19 deaths during the same period, with 1,891 LA County residents dying from COVID-related illness from Oct. 1, 2022, to March 1, 2023.
People who are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19 include people over 65-years-old. Over the 90-day period ending Feb. 28, unvaccinated people in Los Angeles County who were 65-79 were more than 4 times more likely to be hospitalized when compared to those vaccinated, and yet to receive the bivalent booster, in the same age group. And the difference is greater when comparing those unvaccinated in this age group to those vaccinated and boosted with the bivalent booster where the magnitude of the difference was greater than 10 fold.
Unvaccinated residents over 80 were 2.5 times more likely to be hospitalized than those over 80 years old who were vaccinated and boosted with the bivalent booster.
With less access to health-affirming resources and oftentimes greater exposure through work sites, data shows that people who live in areas with greater rates of poverty are also at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19.
For the 90-day period ending Feb. 28, unvaccinated residents living in the poorest areas were 11 times more likely to be hospitalized than unvaccinated residents living in the wealthiest areas. Among residents in the poorest areas, unvaccinated individuals were nearly 14 times more likely to be hospitalized than individuals with the bivalent booster.
In LA County from 2020-2022, COVID-19 was the second leading cause of death behind coronary heart disease People living with underlying health conditions including obesity, kidney disease, diabetes, asthma, pregnancy or recent pregnancy, and other common conditions are also at increased risk of hospitalization and death from COVID-19.
“I offer my sincere condolences to those who have lost a loved one to COVID-19. I wish you comfort and peace,” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.Ed., Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “LA County is a place where people care for others. As guidelines shift around COVID-19, our ability to care for those who remain more vulnerable to severe illness associated with COVID-19 remains important. COVID-19 is still with us and we continue to see the impact each day as hospitals take care of dozens and dozens of patients with COVID-19 associated illness and, tragically, seven people pass away on average. For those in the community who are most vulnerable, simple common-sense precautions continue to offer protection. And while each of us can decide what steps to take to care for ourselves, we may also need to take actions to protect the safety and health of those most vulnerable who are in our homes, at our worksites, and in our communities.”
With new COVID-19 isolation and quarantine guidance in place, the following steps are strongly recommended to keep residents who are most at-risk safe:
- Test to leave isolation. If you have COVID-19, it remains very important to minimize the risk of passing along an infection. This includes testing negative if leaving isolation between days 5 to 10 of your infection (and only if you’re improving and you’ve been fever free for 24-hours without fever-reducing medicine). Testing before leaving isolation before day 10 will make you significantly less likely to infect others.
- Mask up to leave isolation. After you test negative and leave isolation, please wear a well-fitting mask around others indoors, especially those at higher risk, until day 10. People can be infectious for up to 10 days, and sometimes longer in more severe cases.
- Mask up and test if exposed. If you are a close contact to someone who tests positive, take steps to prevent exposing others. Test as soon as possible. If negative, test again between 3 and 5 days after your known exposure. While symptoms usually appear in the first 3 to 5 days, they can take up to 10 days to appear, so it is recommended close contacts wear a well-fitting mask for 10 days after their last exposure.
- Know your COVID-19 status. Take an at-home COVID-19 test before gatherings, especially if those at higher risk will be in attendance, so you don’t unknowingly infect others. Free tests can be found at Public Health vaccination sites and clinics, many libraries, and schools. Health insurance policies, including Medi-Cal are still required to reimburse each member for up to eight tests a month.
In addition to taking these sensible steps, everyone who is eligible should receive the updated bivalent booster. This booster, available to ages 6 months and older, has been shown to provide significant protection against hospitalization and death even when compared to individuals who have been fully vaccinated but had not received the updated booster.
Find a location to get boosted at VaccinateLACounty.com, VacunateLosAngeles.com (en español).
If residents have COVID-19, medication is available even if residents are uninsured and under-insured. Telehealth services to connect residents to COVID-19 medication can be reached at 833-540-0473, 8:00 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.; 7 days a week. These medications must be started within five days of symptom onset and are proven to greatly reduce hospitalizations and deaths.
The 7-day average case count for COVID-19 dropped nearly 13% from the week prior from 832 last week to an average of 726 this week. Reported average daily deaths also dropped nearly 11%, from 11.9 last week to 10.6 this week. The 7-day average of new COVID-19 positive hospital admissions is 76 this week, down from 88 last week. The 7-day average for test positivity remained stable at 4.6%.
Los Angeles County remains in the CDC’s Low COVID-19 Community Level for the ninth consecutive week. This includes a 7-day case rate of 50 new cases per 100,000 people, a decrease from the week prior. The 7-day total for new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100,000 people is currently 5.4, a small decrease from last week. And the 7-day average of the proportion of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients is now 3.1%, down from the week prior.
Today, Public Health reported 11 additional deaths and 814 new positive cases. Please note, Long Beach only reports cases and deaths on Fridays. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 35,875. There are 466 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.
- 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.
- California Department of Public Health:
https://www.cdph.ca.gov/
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/
coronavirus/2019-ncov/index. html
Spanish https://espanol.cdc.
- World Health Organization https://www.who.
int/health-topics/coronavirus - LA County residents can also call 2-1-1
For more information:
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Cases through 12:00pm 3/15/2023 |
|
|
|
|
Total Cases |
|
|
Laboratory Confirmed Cases |
3,718,412 |
|
|
— Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas) |
3,515,783 |
|
|
— Long Beach |
162,816 |
|
|
— Pasadena |
39,813 |
|
|
Deaths |
35,875 |
|
|
— Los Angeles County (excl. LB and Pas) |
34,044 |
|
|
— Long Beach |
1,389 |
|
|
— Pasadena |
442 |
|
|
Age Group (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas) |
|
|
|
– 0 to 4 |
110,967 |
|
|
– 5 to 11 |
282,066 |
|
|
– 12 to 17 |
276,998 |
|
|
– 18 to 29 |
755,191 |
|
|
– 30 to 49 |
1,127,932 |
|
|
– 50 to 64 |
609,577 |
|
|
– 65 to 79 |
259,964 |
|
|
– over 80 |
90,608 |
|
|
– Under Investigation |
2,480 |
|
|
Gender (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas) |
|
|
|
– Female |
1,813,365 |
|
|
– Male |
1,611,992 |
|
|
– Other |
1,770 |
|
|
– Under Investigation |
88,656 |
|
|
Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas) |
|
|
|
– American Indian/Alaska Native |
6,666 |
|
|
– Asian |
261,200 |
|
|
– Black |
184,371 |
|
|
– Hispanic/Latino |
1,505,902 |
|
|
– Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander |
17,619 |
|
|
– White |
487,154 |
|
|
– Other |
402,564 |
|
|
– Under Investigation |
650,307 |
|
|
Hospitalization (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas) |
|
|
|
– Hospitalized (Ever) |
174,645 |
|
|
Deaths Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas) |
|
|
|
– American Indian/Alaska Native |
80 |
|
|
– Asian |
4,419 |
|
|
– Black |
3,189 |
|
|
– Hispanic/Latino |
16,730 |
|
|
– Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander |
118 |
|
|
– White |
9,008 |
|
|
– Other |
410 |
|
|
– Under Investigation |
90 |
