LA County will continue to prioritize a second dose of COVID vaccine next week

Los Angeles (KABC)-Because the supply of vaccines is still limited, Los Angeles County has booked most of the vaccinations available next week and will give a second dose to those who are ready to receive a second dose. To provide. , Health officials announced.

“Most of the appointments on our vaccination site will continue to be the second vaccination next week,” said Dr. Paul Simon, chief scientific officer of the county public health service, on Friday. Mega-POD (Point of Dispending) Site “

The county-run Mega POD is located at Pomona Fairplex, Magic Mountain, Forums, Downey’s County Education Department, and California State University, Northridge.

He said the first dose would be available elsewhere, primarily in health centers, pharmacies, and “other providers servicing the areas most hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

See: Uncover rumors and myths about the COVID-19 vaccine

Municipal sites such as Dodger Stadium, Hansen Dam, Clenshaw Clinic, San Fernando Clinic and Lincoln Park Clinic have been temporarily closed due to lack of dose. The city ran out of vaccines late last week and the city-operated site will reopen on Tuesday or Wednesday.

The county receives approximately 200,000 doses each week, but the actual doses vary widely from week to week, making it difficult to plan reservations in advance. Due to the very limited supplies this week, the city of Los Angeles ran out of supplies by Thursday afternoon, forcing it to shut down the Dodger Stadium vaccination site and four other locations throughout the weekend.

“We share their frustration. We are all frustrated. We know that with higher doses we can do more. For example, now weekly. We have received about 200,000 doses, and after investigating all providers, we are confident that we can administer up to 600,000 doses per week, so it would be much better if available vaccines were available. I have great ability. “

Both Simon and county health officer Dr. Muntu Davis said it would be important to increase supply as more people were targeted for shots-the state will be 16 years old with underlying illness or disability next month. They are very vulnerable to COVID deaths and serious illnesses, who said they plan to extend their eligibility to all of these people.

Relation: California Expands Vaccine Eligibility to 16-64 Years Old, Underlying Health

Davis recognized a downward trend that generally improved in everyday cases, but although the numbers improved, they were still high, and the risk of encountering someone with COVID-19 was still very high. It ’s expensive. ” ‘

The county reported an additional 137 COVID deaths on Friday, and Long Beach health officials announced 14 deaths and one in Pasadena, raising the total death toll to 18,804.

An additional 3,497 new cases were identified in the county, 124 in Long Beach and 29 in Pasadena, increasing the cumulative total of the pandemic to 1,161,926.

The county also reported another 15 cases of multiple organ inflammatory syndrome, or MIS-C, in pediatrics, increasing the overall total, including one death, to 90. Health officials said the number of MIS-C infections has increased locally by 35% in the last two weeks. The syndrome generally affects children after being infected with COVID-19, but it can also affect patients who have not been previously known to be infected.

According to state statistics, as of Friday, there were 3,426 people admitted to the county for COVID, and 1,032 were in intensive care. In early January, more than 8,000 people were hospitalized for the virus.

“Therefore, there is positive news in that things get worse,” Davis said. “As the number of these cases declines, we hope to continue to decline as we can enter the less restrictive tier and consider more openings. Economy … and there are less restrictive changes.”

See: Dr. Fauci describes the effect of COVID-19 mutants on vaccines

He urged people to continue to adhere to protocols such as masking and physical distance. He acknowledged the formalized changes this week, allowing him to resume worship in the indoor church with limited capacity and limited activity during worship. However, despite the changes, he said, “It is safer for the place of worship to hold only outdoor and remote services. These are people at high risk of serious illness due to COVID-19 and living with them. It’s the safest option for those who have it. “

Davis also plans to hold an indoor religious council in early March by the Grace Community Church in Sunvalley, which has repeatedly opposed county and court orders by hosting large-scale indoor services, usually attending more than 3,000 people. Expressed disappointment. The county said it was “exploring options” to challenge the event, and while such meetings were banned by health restrictions, it is unclear whether the conflict would be exempt as a religious rally. is there.

However, on Friday night, the Church announced that it had chosen to postpone the meeting in light of “ongoing proceedings and recent threats” from the counties and states regarding the planned event.

Regarding the vaccine, Simon said the latest figures indicate that there were 1,345,949 doses in the county, of which 1,047,074 were the first doses. A total of 13.5% of the county’s population over the age of 16 has been vaccinated at least once, and 3.8% of that population has been fully vaccinated.

City News Service contributed to this report.