Los Angeles County health officials are urging workers to wear face masks in their own homes in an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in an area where the virus kills every seven minutes.
Barbara Ferrer, director of public health in Los Angeles County, said Monday that “because there is so much spread, we recommend that people wear their face masks while they are indoors.”
Ferrer said this includes everyone who leaves home every day for work or for family members to carry out assignments. She said it is especially important for people who go to work every day and live with older residents or with residents with an underlying medical condition.
She said it would “add a layer of protection as we get through this boom”.
Los Angeles County is an epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, which accounts for about 40 percent of California virus deaths and a large number of new cases.
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Los Angeles County health officials are urging workers (pictured last month) to wear face masks in their own homes to spread COVID-19 in the area where the virus kills every seven minutes
Barbara Ferrer, director of public health in Los Angeles County, said Monday that “because there is so much distribution, we recommend that people wear their face masks while they are indoors”
On Monday, nearly 8,000 people were admitted to the hospital in Los Angeles County, with fewer than 50 intensive care units in an area with 10 million residents, said Dr. Christina Ghaly, director of health services.
There is some hope, with new hospitalizations around the world from about 3,500 a day earlier this month to about 2,500. Some forecasts have predicted that hospitalizations will decline by the end of the month.
While the province has seen a dip in new cases, Ferrer said it is likely due to reduced tests after the New Year holidays.
She predicted another increase in cases of people gathering together unsafe during the holidays.
Ferrer said that on average, COVID-19 still kills someone in the country every seven minutes. Deaths increased from 12 deaths per day in early November to more than 200 deaths reported daily.
‘This is not the time to meet up with friends at your home to watch the game. This is not the time to go for a walk without a mask. All that is needed is one mistake and soon five, ten or twenty other people will be infected – many of whom may be friends, family members or colleagues, ‘Ferrer said in a statement.
“This deadly virus is still spreading at an alarming rate, and the most important way to stop it in its tracks is to avoid interactions with others and protect ourselves at all times,” she said.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reported 932,697 positive cases of COVID-19 in all areas of LA County and a total of 12,387 deaths.
Meanwhile, California as a whole is turning baseball stadiums, fairs and even a Disneyland Resort parking lot into massive vaccination sites as coronavirus hospitals overwhelm hospitals.
The COVID-19 death toll in California reached 30,000 people on Monday, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.
It took six months before the country with the largest population reached 10,000 deaths, but barely a month to jump from 20,000 to 30,000 deaths. California ranks third for COVID-19 deaths in third place, behind Texas and New York, which are number 1 with nearly 40,000.
Public health officials estimate that about 12 percent of those who contract the virus need hospital care, usually a few weeks after infection as they become ill.
Los Angeles County is an epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak, which accounts for about 40 percent of California virus deaths and a large number of new cases.
Ferrer said that on average, COVID-19 still kills someone in the country every seven minutes
Governor Gavin Newsom and public health officials are counting on widespread vaccinations to help stem the tide of new infections, starting with medical workers and the most vulnerable elderly, such as those in nursing homes.
Newsom, a Democrat, acknowledged that vaccine deployment was too slow and promised that 1 million shots would be fired this week, more than twice what has been done so far.
The effort will require what Newsom calls a ‘practical approach’, including vaccination by pharmacists and pharmacists, dentists, paramedics and emergency medical technicians and members of the California National Guard.
Orange County, south of Los Angeles County, announced Monday that its first mass vaccination site will be at a Disneyland Resort parking lot in Anaheim. It is one of five sites that should vaccinate thousands of people daily.
Provincial supervisor Doug Chaffee said in a statement that the sites’ are absolutely essential to stop this deadly virus.
The state will greatly expand its efforts with new mass vaccination sites at parking lots for Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Petco Park in San Diego and the CalExpo Fair in Sacramento.
This photo from the video provided by ABC7 Los Angeles shows workers throwing corpses in a cool trailer at the Los Angeles County Coroner’s offices in Los Angeles on Friday.
A member of the California National Guard is standing next to cool trailers while a hearse driver leaves the Coroner’s department in Los Angeles on Monday.
Motors stopped at the scene in San Diego early Monday, where officials wanted to vaccinate 5,000 health workers daily.
“It’s kind of a ‘Disneyland ride’ with cars driving by,” said Heather Buschman, spokeswoman for UC San Diego Health, whose medical staff fired the shots.
She said people seem eager to be vaccinated, and more than 12,500 health workers in San Diego County initially planned appointments.
By the end of the week, the city of Los Angeles planned to turn its large COVID-19 test site at Dodger Stadium into a vaccination center to handle 12,000 vaccinations daily.
Legislators also continued to plead with people to keep social distance to slow down the spread of infection.
“Dying for COVID in the hospital only means dying,” said Hilda Solis, chair of the Board of Supervisors.
‘Visitors are not allowed in hospitals for their own safety. Families say goodbye to tablets and cell phones. ‘
“One of the more heartbreaking conversations our health workers share is about these last words when children apologize to their parents and grandparents for bringing COVID into their homes, because they got sick,” Solis said. ‘
And these excuses are just a few of the last words loved ones will ever hear. ‘