According to the director of public health in Los Angeles County, the increase in new coronavirus cases associated with the 2020 holiday season will slow down, and LA may soon meet the national standard for reopening schools.
New cases of coronavirus in LA County have dropped to about 3,500 a day, Dr. Barbara Ferrer said on the news program’s afternoon program: “All things considered.” And the average number of people infected by one sick person is going down.
“Our daily test positivity is now 7%,” she said. ‘At the beginning of January we were at 20%. So there is much less transmission going on. ”
Currently, 3,600 people in the country are hospitalized with COVID-19, and one in three of these people is in intensive care. On Saturday, provincial officials reported another 197 COVID-19 deaths, bringing the total to 18,986.
On Friday, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released guidelines for reopening of schools. Ferrer expressed optimism that local schools would soon be able to reach the required numbers.
“I do believe that LA County will reach that benchmark very quickly … where we will have less than 25 new cases per 100,000 residents,” she said. “That way, those elementary schools that want to reopen can reopen.”
Many problems around reopening have yet to be ironed out.
California Gavin Newsom is working on legislation to give schools money for safety supplies, but Austin Beutner, Los Angeles Unified School District, said there are not enough funds planned for underserved places.
Some activists and experts have expressed concern that returning to school will put families living in multi-generation homes at greater risk.
LAUSD parents expressed mixed opinions about the resumption of classroom instruction. And the teachers’ union wants all teachers and staff to be vaccinated before schools reopen.
The CDC’s recommendations suggest that teachers should give preference to the vaccine, but that schools may reopen before educators get their chance.