LA County reports elevated COVID among unvaccinated adolescents

Los Angeles, California — A staggering surge in Los Angeles County in cases of coronavirus continued on Saturday, with authorities reporting 1,094 new cases of COVID-19 and eight more deaths.

According to state statistics, the number of people hospitalized in Los Angeles County for the virus is also steadily increasing, rising from 336 to 373 on Friday. As of Saturday, 79 people were in the intensive care unit, down from 83 the day before.

Local health officials also said on Saturday that COVID-19 infections were increasing among residents of young unvaccinated counties. Of the 1,094 new cases reported by the Los Angeles County Public Health Service, 83% are people under the age of 50, with the most new cases among residents between the ages of 18 and 49, 70%. Is a new case.

“As more cases increase, the urgency of getting more people vaccinated is increasing. Almost 100% of new cases are occurring among those who are not completely vaccinated,” the county public said. Barbara Ferrer, director of health, said. “All of our COVID-19 vaccines are very effective in protecting you from serious illness from variant of concern such as COVID-19 and Delta mutants. We are in LA County. We continue to focus on providing vaccines and high-quality health information fairly to all communities. We are particularly focused on those that have been hit hard by the pandemic. “

The “delta” variant is believed to be responsible for outbreaks in India and outbreaks in the United Kingdom and beyond. Federal officials say the variant is also believed to be responsible for most of the new infections reported in the United States. The majority of these are unvaccinated residents.

Saturday figures have resulted in a total of 1,256,515 cases and 24,538 deaths in the county since the pandemic began.

The daily test positive rate was 2.4%. As of Friday, the average 7-day virus-positive rate was 2.4%, a slight decrease from the 2.5% reported on Thursday, but higher than 1.5% a week ago and 0.3% in mid-June. ..

Increasing cases continue to affect black residents in the county at a much higher rate than other ethnic groups, correlating with a dramatic delay in vaccination rates in the black community. From the end of May to the end of June, the new infection rate for black residents increased from 38 per 100,000 to 65 per 100,000, Feller said.

All other ethnic groups saw an increase in the meantime, but at a much lower rate. As of the end of June, the hospitalization rate for black residents was 9.3 per 100,000, while white residents were 2.7 and Latinos were 5.4.

Feller said the combination of a large number of unvaccinated residents and the lifting of COVID’s health restrictions on assembly and indoor containment capacity far increases the chances of infection of these residents.

She said unvaccinated people need to adhere to infection control measures such as wearing masks indoors and proper hygiene. However, she said vaccination was clearly the most effective way to prevent infection.

Of the counties 16 and older, 69% have been vaccinated at least once and 60% have been fully vaccinated. However, the proportion of black residents is 54% for Latinos, 65% for whites, and 76% for Asians, compared to only 45% with at least one dose. Vaccination rates are particularly low among young black residents, with only 28% of people aged 18-29 years being vaccinated.

The county continues to provide incentives in the hope of encouraging more people to be vaccinated. From Friday to next Thursday, anyone vaccinated at the county, the City of Los Angeles, or a site operated by the St. John’s Well Child and Family Center will win one of seven concert ticket awards, including box seats. I have a chance. Tickets for the Hollywood Bowl and Staples Center concerts such as Celine Dion, Grupo Pharma, Luke Bryan, Kane Brown, and Dan + Shay.

— City News Service