L.A. County Reports 538 New Cases of COVID-19, One Death

L.A. County reported 538 new cases of COVID-19 and one death today, though health officials said the relatively low numbers may reflect delays in weekend reporting.

The number of COVID-19 patients in county hospitals continued to decline, dropping from 669 Saturday to 655, while the number of those in intensive care units increased from 166 to 178, according to state figures.

Sunday’s numbers brought the county’s totals to 1,218,225 cases and 23,077 deaths since the pandemic began, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

As the overall numbers continue to decline, the department is warning the public that Spring Break and the Easter and Passover holidays present danger of greater transmission of the virus.

“As we approach Spring Break and numerous religious and spiritual holidays, it is important to remember that travel and gathering in-person with others increases the risk of getting and spreading COVID-19,” the department said Saturday. “While COVID-19 numbers have decreased in L.A. County, transmission remains widespread and is increasing in many other states and countries.”

Anyone who is arriving in Los Angeles County from outside the state must self-quarantine for 10 days, officials added.

Meanwhile, with vaccine eligibility expanding this week to all
residents 50 and over, a county health official is warning that getting an appointment for a shot will initially be difficult due to continued scarcity of vaccine supplies, but he said the situation will improve.

The county this week is actually set to receive its largely weekly
allotment of vaccine to date — 338,100 doses — and tens of thousands more doses will be sent directly to other local vaccination providers, such as pharmacies and healthcare centers.

But when eligibility expands to those 50 and over on Thursday, it will add an estimated 800,000 to 1 million people to the pool of residents competing for limited doses. That’s on top of the millions of people who are already eligible for the shots.

“There will undoubtedly be a rush come April 1,” said Dr. Paul
Simon, the county Health Department’s chief science officer. “… I want to make sure the public recognizes that there may be challenges to getting an appointment immediately. It just, again, reflects the limited supply of vaccine.

“Even with an increased supply of vaccine, we certainly can’t handle a million people over that first week, given all the other groups that are also currently being vaccinated,” he said. “But I would expect over the following several weeks, the demand will diminish a bit and things will open up, particularly as the vaccine supply continues to increase. I encourage people to
just be patient. If they’re not able to get an appointment immediately, wait a week or so and I believe things will be easier to navigate.”