Los Angeles County scientists now estimate that 1 in 3 residents has contracted COVID-19 since the onset of the pandemic, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.
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Health officials estimate one in three LA County residents is infected with coronavirus
That would mean that at least 3 million of the province’s 10 million inhabitants are infected – more than triple the number confirmed by the test, according to the Times.
“Unfortunately, we are still engaging in behaviors that facilitate the spread of the virus, so it is still able to find many susceptible people to infect,” Roger Lewis, director of COVID-19 Hospital, asked for modeling for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, told the newspaper.
In order to ensure that herd immunity through vaccination becomes an effective strategy to control the virus, about 75 percent of the country’s residents will have to develop immunity, Lewis estimated.
Video: For Nurses, Outbreaks of Viruses in California Take a Personal Toll (Associated Press)
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FOLLOWING
The province has become an important place for the coronavirus in a state that leads the country in infection rates.
As the virus continued to devastate the area, the emergency room’s capacity dropped to zero percent. Some hospital facilities have turned to keeping patients in gift shops and other non-designated treatment areas. Ambulances in Los Angeles County have also reportedly been told not to transport patients who had a low chance of survival this month to save oxygen availability as the pandemic worsens.
“The high number of COVID-19 patients in our hospitals is not only of concern to those who have COVID-19, but also to everyone else in the province who needs acute care during this time,” the health department said in a statement. statement said. “People with a stroke or heart attack or a traumatic injury as a result of a car accident find it more difficult to access care compared to normal times.”
As of January 4, the province’s health department reported that 7,677 people had been hospitalized with coronavirus. In early November, the number in the hospital was 791. By the end of December, the country had reached the bad milestone of 10,000 deaths due to the virus.
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