More Californians died of COVID-19 in January than any other month of the pandemic, according to data from The Times tracker, while LA County still bears the brunt of the virus’ toll.
In the first month of 2021, 14,940 people lost their lives to the disease in California, bringing the death toll from the state to nearly 41,000, meaning that at least 1 in every 1,000 Californians was killed by COVID-19 .
In Los Angeles County, 6,411 people died in January – 137% more than the previous deadliest month of December, in which 2,703 people died. To date, nearly 17,000 people in the country have died from the disease.
The record number of deaths comes despite a downward trend in cases of coronavirus and hospitalizations, as well as increasing vaccinations in Los Angeles County.
Currently, only about 2,700 deaths separate California and New York, where just over 43,600 people have died from the disease since the onset of the pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. But New York saw its peak in April, while California is still succumbing to a boom that began in late November.
Barbara Ferrer, director of public health in LA County, called it a ‘critical moment in the pandemic’. It is important that the public does not relax, although some numbers have improved and restrictions have been lifted.
“It’s … time to be very vigilant against this deadly virus and stay at home as much as possible,” Ferrer said. “It is only through the actions that every business and every individual in LA County is taking, that we are going to see this continuing reduction in distribution.”
The boom in LA County peaked in early January, Ferrer said, after which the average number of daily deaths due to COVID-19 dropped by about 33%. But, she noted, it was ‘actually just a very small decrease’ compared to the 1,400% increase in deaths that the province overtook during December and January.
“An additional increase in cases will require us to take a step backwards in our recovery journey, and that’s something none of us want,” Ferrer said. “We’re still living through the nightmare of a boom.”
Nationwide, the numbers are just as grim: More than 95,000 people in the U.S. died in January from COVID-19, surpassing the previous December high of just over 77,000. More than 441,000 people have died nationwide since the first cases of COVID-19 were reported just over a year ago.
Yet Los Angeles County continues to suffer excessively: according to Johns Hopkins, LA has recorded more deaths than any other state in the U.S., Chicago, Cook County is a distant second with 9,420 deaths.
LA County has averaged about 6,200 new coronavirus cases per day in the past week, significantly lower than the average of about 15,100 new cases per day recorded in early January, but still much higher than the daily average of less than 1,000 new cases per day in mid-October.
The number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 is now around 5,300, the lowest since mid-December. COVID-19 hospitalizations peak in LA County on January 5, with a peak level of 8,098, but are still much higher than in early October, when there were fewer than 700 COVID-19 patients in hospitals across the country wash.
The average daily number of COVID-19 deaths is still high in LA County – about 215 deaths per day over the past week. The highest daily average was 241, recorded for the seven-day period ending January 14th.
A Times analysis found that there were 63.5 deaths per 100,000 residents in LA County in January. Overall, the rate was 38.2.
The rise of the B.1.1.7 is very worrying for officials variant, which keeps the province informed. Officials at the LA County Department of Public Health confirmed on Saturday that the second case of the British variant, which is more transmissible and could be more deadly than the more common variety of the coronavirus.
The B.1.1.7 variant, first identified in Britain, is not believed to be a dominant strain in LA County, but officials and experts in San Diego County have warned that its emergence could likely affect hospitals. overwhelmed when people decide to stop wearing masks and physical distance as in the weeks before Thanksgiving.
Officials urge residents and businesses to be vigilant about personal protection actions and safety measures.
“Just because some sectors have reopened does not mean that the risk of community transfer has disappeared,” Ferrer said in a news release. ‘It did not, and each of us has to make very careful choices about what we do and how we do it. This virus is strong, and we are now worried about variants and what it will mean in our region. ‘
Public health officials announced the first confirmed case of the British COVID-19 variant in the county on 16 January. Days later, a second, ‘homemade’ strain, B.1.426, was found to be responsible for nearly a quarter of the 4,500 viral specimens collected. throughout California in the final weeks of 2020.
In addition, four new cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children were reported by health officials Saturday, bringing the total cases of MIS-C in LA County to 66 children, including one death.
MIS-C is an inflammatory condition associated with COVID-19. Symptoms include fever that does not go away, and inflamed body parts, including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs.
All 66 children with MIS-C in LA County were admitted to the hospital, officials said, and 44% were admitted to the intensive care unit. Of those infected, 32% were younger than 5; 38% were from 5 to 11 years old; and 30% were between 12 and 20 years old.
Latino children accounted for nearly three-quarters of the reported MIS-C cases, promoting the alarmingly high levels of COVID-19-related diseases among the province of Latino.
“There is deep sadness, sadness and loss in our country due to COVID-19,” Ferrer said. “Although some restrictions have only been lifted in our country, we are still in a very dangerous period in terms of cases, hospitalizations and deaths.”
The last time hospitals were able to offer their full range of services was in early November, when there were less than 900 COVID-19 patients in LA County facilities, Ferrer said Monday: “While we’re heading right, we still have a way to go before our hospitals are not overcrowded and health workers are not stressed. ‘
The latest data shows that the latest surge was again driven by younger adults, but caused the greatest hospitalization and deaths among the oldest residents.
Among a sample of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 during August to December, 43% were 65 or older and 86% had at least one underlying health condition. Two out of every three patients admitted to the hospital were overweight or obese; 41% had type 2 diabetes and nearly two-thirds had cardiovascular disease.
“These numbers are a serious reminder of the risk of serious illness among older adults and people with underlying health conditions,” Ferrer said. “Many, many people in LA County fall into one or more of these risk groups, and we must all do our best to protect them.”
Meanwhile, vaccination efforts continue in the country, despite a rocky start and an anti-vaccination demonstration that deterred operations at Dodger Stadium over the weekend. Officials on Monday criticized protesters blocking access for people trying to get vaccinated.
“I was very upset and discouraged,” LA County Superintendent Hilda Solis said of the disruption of the vaccination efforts.
Solis said authorities would set up space in the future for protesters who could share their views but would not disrupt the flow of traffic.
“I understand that people have the first amendment rights. “But if you become disruptive and actually create more problems through congestion, traffic congestion or hostility in a way that is not conducive, I would like to involve our public safety officials in it and be there to protect all those involved, ‘ Solis said.
To date, more than 886,000 doses of the two types of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered across the country, according to The Times vaccination tracker.
“LA County has administered more doses of vaccine today than any other major province or major city in the United States, and we have the highest percentage of administration,” Ferrer said.
But the shipments were inconsistent. For the week of Jan. 11, LA County received 193,950 doses; the following week it received only 168,575 doses and only 146,225 doses the week after.
“The rate of vaccinations remains very slow due to the limited supply,” Ferrer said, adding that the second doses are currently being prioritized among the residents of the region.