Over 5,300 COVID Cases Among LA County Students – NBC Los Angeles

More than 5,300 cases of COVID-19 have been detected in students from kindergarten to high school in Los Angeles County in the past two weeks, and the director of public health called again calmly on Wednesday, but she and the county school director. Showed confidence that safety measures were taken on campus.

Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the majority of cases were detected, especially thanks to aggressive routine screening tests within the Los Angeles Unified School District. The Los Angeles Unified School District now accounts for almost two-thirds of all COVID tests conducted throughout the county.

“There are an average of about 500 cases per day (among students) across LA County,” she said. “… The majority of these cases are identified by regular screening, and these are actually asymptomatic people. So it’s a large so modest number, but before showing symptoms, and they It really helps to identify people infected with COVID before they get many opportunities … to go ahead and spread the virus. “

She also said that a large number of cases would lead to more work in the county because all patients need to be interviewed so that they can identify close contact with them and direct them to quarantine.

“The cool news for all of us is that the community has a high infection rate … our school community has a lot of positive tests and can actually infect others. There are people, “she said. Act swiftly to prevent school infections that could cause very large outbreaks. This has been successful since it reopened last fall. “

Feller said he noticed when he visited the school campus that he “was very careful about the details to ensure safety.”

Debra Duardo, director of the county education bureau, said the mitigation strategy at school was “very effective.”

“I visit school every day, and kids and adults wear masks, follow all protocols, disinfect, and do a great job at a distance from each other,” she said. “I think we’re doing everything we can to make sure the school is as safe as possible and prevents the spread of COVID within the school.

Hospitalization by COVID is steadily progressing. Angie Crouch will report on NBC4 News on Tuesday, August 31, 2021.

“If the infection rate is high in the community, you will see some of them infect our school, but the infection rate in the school is not so high, so it is very difficult for us to do the work we are doing. I am happy with the teachers and managers, and all school staff in following all strategies. “

Between August 15th and 29th, 5,307 COVID-19 cases were identified among students in the county and 729 were identified by school staff, according to figures released by the county on Wednesday.

A total of 17 outbreaks (defined as 3 or more related cases) were confirmed at school in August. There were 3 outbreaks in each of the first 3 weeks of the month and 8 outbreaks in the last week. Seventy-two students and three staff members were involved in these eight outbreaks.

Feller said more outbreaks were likely to occur if the school remained open, and that about half of the outbreaks were related to school sports. The most common causes of the outbreak were failure to wear masks, lack of physical distance both indoors and outdoors, and lack of proper ventilation.

As of late Wednesday afternoon, the county had not yet released its daily COVID-19 case number. On Tuesday, the county reported an additional 33 COVID deaths, increasing the cumulative death toll from the entire pandemic to 25,284. The county recorded an additional 1,938 cases on Tuesday, increasing the total number of confirmed cases in the county to 1,407,317.

According to state statistics, the county hospital has 1,673 COVID-positive patients, of whom 446 are in the intensive care unit. This is down from Tuesday, when 1,699 people were hospitalized for COVID and 448 were hospitalized for ICU.

The average daily percentage of people who tested positive for the virus in Los Angeles County was 2.5% as of Tuesday, down from 2.9% a week ago.

Feller attributed the recent decline to an increase in screening tests conducted in schools and businesses.

Of all eligible residents in counties over the age of 12, 65% are fully vaccinated and 74% are vaccinated at least once. According to Feller, 91% to 92% of those who received the first dose also received the second dose on time, a sign that the county’s vaccination coverage will improve in the coming weeks.

As of August 22, only 50% of black residents in Los Angeles County received at least one dose, the lowest percentage between the ages of 12 and 29. The proportion of Latin / a residents is 59%, while 69% of Caucasians and 79% of Asians.