{"id":55541,"date":"2022-12-24T18:04:45","date_gmt":"2022-12-25T02:04:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=55541"},"modified":"2022-12-24T22:05:24","modified_gmt":"2022-12-25T06:05:24","slug":"layered-protections-safeguard-older-people-against-covid-19-reduce-stress-on-hospitals-health-care-providers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=55541","title":{"rendered":"Layered Protections Safeguard Older People Against COVID-19, Reduce Stress on Hospitals, Health Care Providers"},"content":{"rendered":"

3,006 New Positive Cases and 23 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County<\/em><\/h3>\n

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) is asking residents to layer protections this holiday season to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmissions, especially for older people, and to limit additional stress on health care providers and hospitals.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, Los Angeles County moved from the High Community Level into the Medium Community Level, after two weeks at High Community Level, based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) designation. The case rate is now 177 new cases per 100,000 people.<\/p>\n

Death rates, however, continue to climb in Los Angeles County, especially among older people. Of the 23 new deaths reported today, 14 people were 80-years-old or older; six people were 65- to 79-years-old; one person was 50- to 64-years-old; and one person was 30- to 49-years-old. All of them had underlying health conditions. (One death was reported by the City of Long Beach; for more information, visit\u00a0longbeach.gov<\/a>.) To date, the total number of COVID-19 deaths in Los Angeles County is 34,561.<\/p>\n

While case numbers have decreased slightly, Public Health officials are concerned that traveling and gathering during the holidays will result in\u00a0increased transmission and severe illness which would place greater stress on the county\u2019s hospitals and health care system.<\/p>\n

With nearly 200 cases per 100,000 people, transmission levels are still high. To help protect older people and people who are immuno-compromised or have underlying health conditions\u00a0in your family, at your jobs, and in the community, Los Angeles County residents should continue to mask when indoors and follow other health measures. Having plenty of well-fitting, high-filtration masks on hand, preferably N95s, KN95s, or KF94s, will help limit transmission.<\/p>\n

Vaccines remain the best protection against severe COVID-19 illness. Everyone eligible \u2013 which now includes children 6-months or older — should get the new bivalent vaccine. For more information, call the Department of Public Health Vaccine Call Center at 1-833-540-0473. The call center is\u00a0open daily 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. To find a vaccine site, visit\u00a0ph.lacounty.gov\/howtogetvaccinated<\/a>\u00a0or contact your health care provider.<\/p>\n

In addition to wearing masks when indoors and getting the updated\u00a0booster, there is still time to get the seasonal flu vaccine, since flu season generally lasts into the Spring. When choosing activities or planning an event, it also makes sense to look for outdoor options. If it doesn\u2019t work to be outside, open windows and doors to increase ventilation inside.<\/p>\n

Testing for COVID before gatherings to reduce transmission remains especially important because people can transmit the COVID-19 virus without having symptoms. Go to\u00a0ph.lacounty.gov\/COVIDtests<\/a>\u00a0for more information about testing. Order free COVID tests from the federal government\u00a0at COVIDtests.gov.<\/p>\n

Finally, it\u2019s important\u00a0for people to stay home when they are sick. Anyone who\u00a0tests positive for COVID-19 and has symptoms, including\u00a0fever, coughing, sneezing, unusual fatigue, or muscle aches,\u00a0is advised to speak to their\u00a0healthcare provider about options for oral anti-viral medication. For COVID-19, antivirals should be started within 5 days of symptom onset. Anyone who\u00a0does not have a provider may\u00a0call the Public Health Call Center at 1-833-540-0473 to access free telehealth services.<\/p>\n

\u201cI offer my condolences to those who have lost someone to COVID-19 during these past few years. This is an especially difficult time of year to be without a loved one and I would like to extend my deepest sympathies,\u201d said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. \u201cGiven that upcoming holiday gatherings and travel could lead to increased transmission, we continue to urge residents to layer in protections over the next few weeks. I have been seeing a lot more people masking indoors and more people are getting vaccinated with the bivalent booster.\u00a0We take moving into Medium as a sign that these efforts to reduce COVID-19 are helping.\u00a0Hopefully we can all continue to take these steps during the holidays since risk remains elevated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, Public Health reported 3,006 new positive cases. There are 1,201 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 12,805,439 individuals, with 25 percent of people testing positive.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0http:\/\/www.publichealth.lacounty.gov<\/a>\u00a0including:<\/p>\n