As predicted, Los Angeles County topped 20,000 new COVID-19 cases Thursday amid what has become a dramatic surge in virus transmission that is continuing to drive up hospitalization numbers and raising fears that a higher death count will soon follow.
More dramatically, the average daily rate of people testing positive for the virus rose to 21% as of Thursday -- seven times higher than it was a week ago. Last month, the rate was less than 1%.
Ferrer said that while circulation of the highly transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19 has led to more fully vaccinated people getting infected, hospitalizations continue to be affecting primarily unvaccinated people. She said the hospitalization rate for unvaccinated people is 28 per 100,000 residents, while the rate for the vaccinated has remained relatively flat at 1 per 100,000.
According to county figures, of the more than 6.3 million fully vaccinated people in the county, 127,172 have tested positive for the virus, for a rate of 2%, while 3,094 have been hospitalized, for a rate of 0.05%. A total of 602 fully vaccinated people have died, for a rate of 0.01%. Ferrer urged more people to get vaccinated, and noted there are 2.9 million vaccinated residents in the county who are eligible for booster doses who have not yet received them.Ferrer and county Supervisor Holly Mitchell urged residents to be cautious as they celebrate New Year's Eve, with Ferrer noting,"The risk of virus transmission has never been higher in our county.'' She urged people to avoid large gatherings, and gather outside whenever is possible.
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