LA County COVID hospitalizations hold steady despite rise in cases
The number of coronavirus patients in Los Angeles County hospitals was holding stable despite a significant rise in cases over the past few weeks.
The number of people being treated for COVID-19 in L.A. County hospitals was at 318 Sunday.
A week ago, there were about 250 COVID-19 patients in L.A. County hospitals. The number is significantly down from mid-January, when hospitalizations topped a staggering 4,800.
The latest numbers come two days after local officials reported another 4,025 COVID-19 infections in the county, the highest single-day number since mid-February, providing further evidence of continued high transmission of the virus.
The average daily rate of people testing positive for the virus was 2.8% as of Friday, up from 2.6% Thursday.
Six more virus-related fatalities were also reported Friday, raising the county's COVID death toll to 32,022.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health does not report COVID data on weekends.
L.A. County Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer said Thursday that the average daily number of new cases recorded over the past week rose to more than 2,600, up nearly 20% from a week ago.
Continued increases could potentially lead to a re-imposition of public health rules, such as indoor mask wearing.
The rising case rates, however, have not led to the normally anticipated surge in virus-related deaths. Ferrer said the county is averaging about four virus-related deaths per day.
Ferrer said a variety of factors was likely preventing hospitalization and death numbers from rising, including widespread vaccinations, natural immunity from previous infections and the availability of therapeutics aimed at knocking down infections before they develop into severe illness.
But she said another factor was the relatively low infection rates among the age groups most vulnerable to developing severe illness from COVID. Residents age 80 and older currently have the lowest rate of COVID infection in the county, followed by children below age 5, followed by adults age 65-79 and adults aged 50-64.
The highest infection rate is currently among the 12-17 age group, followed by those 18-29 and then 30-49.
Ferrer again noted the increased danger facing unvaccinated residents, saying they are five times more likely to be hospitalized due to COVID, and 16 times more likely to die, than their vaccinated counterparts.
Health officials have also said that the majority of people who die of COVID complications have underlying conditions, mainly hypertension, diabetes and heart disease.
