County Officials Watching Trend of COVID Cases Among Unvaccinated Kids

With schools beginning their third week of in-person instruction for the fall term, Los Angeles County health officials are concerned about a trend of rising coronavirus case rates among children who aren’t yet eligible to get vaccinated.

“Case, hospitalization and death rates are higher among unvaccinated members of all groups than they are among those vaccinated,” Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said. “Vaccinated people continue to have rates for all outcomes that are many-fold lower than those unvaccinated — they are four to eight times less likely to be hospitalized, and five to seven times less likely to die from an infection.

“During this period of high transmission, protecting those younger than 12 who are not yet eligible for the vaccine, is of utmost importance and we can all take as many precautions as feasible to limit risk of transmission.”

Ferrer provided a list of safety precautions, including:

• moving activities outdoors whenever possible;

• distancing and avoiding crowds;

• masking always when indoors and outdoors if distancing isn’t possible; and

• carefully assessing nonessential activities that carry more risk of transmission.

The Los Angeles Unified School District will introduce school-based coronavirus vaccine clinics beginning Monday, offering the shots on campus to any eligible students and employees.

Interim Superintendent Megan Reilly said mobile vaccination teams will visit every LAUSD middle and high school campus to deliver first and second doses.

Students age 12 and older are eligible.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced 2,232 new positive COVID-19 tests and five additional deaths on Sunday, bringing the county’s cumulative totals to 1,403,053 cases and 25,245 fatalities since the pandemic began.

The number of COVID patients in county hospitals was 1,687 as of Sunday, according to state figures, with 453 of those in intensive care.