New cases COVID-19 ticks upward in Los Angeles County; officials warn against spring trip

LOS ANGELES (KABC) – New cases of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County have climbed to above 2,200, the highest single day in nearly two weeks, interrupting the general downward trend in new infection numbers.

However, hospitalization numbers have continued to decline, and the current percentage of people who tested positive for the virus in the country has dropped to 2.5%, just above the state-wide rate of 2.1%, according to figures released on Thursday is.

According to state figures, as of Thursday, 1,341 people had been admitted to the country, with 429 people in intensive care.

But the country reported 2,253 new infections, the highest single day since February 20, when 2,393 cases were announced. Health officials said they would closely monitor new case numbers and other indicators, hoping the bump would not become a trend.

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The new cases, combined with 67 reported by health officials in Long Beach and 13 by Pasadena, have increased the total nationwide total since the pandemic began to 1,198,178.

The province also announced another 119 COVID-19 deaths, with Long Beach and Pasadena each adding another fatal death toll. The new deaths increased the total death toll from the province to 21,780.

County Public Director Barbara Ferrer noted Wednesday that the daily number of virus deaths has remained in the triple digits, even while other COVID statistics are trending downward. She said her hospital numbers were getting lower and lower and hoped the death toll would also start to drop.

Health officials have again issued a warning against recreational travel in the wake of the upcoming Spring Break, stressing that anyone traveling out of the area must still be quarantined for ten days when they return to Los Angeles County.

“We can only be a few weeks away from reducing the spread in LA County to allow additional reopening,” Ferrer said in a statement Thursday. ‘With a greater number of cases in other countries and more varieties of concern, spring can travel. could lead to another upsurge that would honestly be almost impossible to tolerate. Travel increases the risk of getting and distributing COVID-19. To avoid this, please postpone travel and make a contribution to slow down the spread so that our recovery is not undone. ‘

Ferrer said on Wednesday that the province had confirmed the first case of a COVID variant first discovered in Brazil, and the number of cases of a variant originating in the UK had risen to 27, a jump of 50% from the 18 cases known as from last week. And a California variant is becoming increasingly dominant, and provincial officials have noticed the mutation in 31 of 55 samples tested specifically for it.

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Gavin Newsom, meanwhile, announced on Wednesday that the first cases of a New York variant had been detected in Southern California, although he did not specify where. The variant is believed to be more easily transmitted from person to person, and federal authorities have expressed concern that the New York variant is more resistant to current vaccines.

The appearance of the variants keeps health officials on edge, although it improves COVID conditions.

Los Angeles County is on track to leave the restrictive press level of the state’s four-tier economic reopening map by the end of March. As it progresses to the less restrictive red level, more businesses could be opened, including indoor dining, movie theaters and fitness centers, all with limited capacity.

Figures released by the state on Tuesday put the adjusted average daily rate of COVID-19 infections at 7.2 per 100,000 inhabitants. If the number drops to 7 per 100,000 inhabitants and stays at the level for two weeks, the country could move from the restrictive press level of the state’s’ Blueprint for a Safer Economy ” and to the red level.

Meanwhile, the state announced a major policy shift Thursday, diverting 40% of all vaccine supplies to people in lower-income communities hit hard by the pandemic. In conjunction with the shift, when the state reaches certain milestones in the number of vaccinations in those communities, it will adjust the required case rates to make provinces progress more easily in reopening the blueprint.

If you move to the red level of blueprint, it will also be possible to resume personal tutoring for students in grades 7-12. The province already meets the requirements for personal classes for kindergartens up to sixth grade.

RELATED: California Will Allocate 40% of COVID-19 Vaccines to Vulnerable Neighborhoods

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