Now, one person dies every 10 minutes from COVID-19 in Los Angeles County, and hospitals have no available IC beds and adequate oxygen supplies.
There are now 6,708 COVID-19 patients in Los Angeles County hospitals – a number that has steadily increased to unprecedented levels in recent weeks – as the region’s available ICU capacity stands at 0.0%.
Dr. UCLA Health’s Anu Seshadri says that while there is no shortage of supplies in her hospital system, self-contained oxygen tanks and plastic hoses are essential to this battle.
“This is what we were afraid of. It’s supply versus demand,” she said. “We are afraid that demand will overtake supply. That’s what’s going on now.”
Officials in Los Angeles County are investigating whether a new strain of the virus that has appeared in South Africa and the United Kingdom has made its way here. The new species is considered more contagious, but not necessarily more deadly than previous species.
“Given that LA is a hub in terms of travel, people coming here, family coming out, schools in attendance, it wouldn’t be surprising if that new species that was identified in the UK, here in Los Angeles is being identified, “Seshadri said.
Much of the recent rise is attributed to gatherings over the Thanksgiving holiday.
Health officials have warned people to stay home during winter vacation, but millions of Americans are still traveling. On Christmas Eve, the TSA screened nearly 1 million people.
New information is also emerging about a rare COVID-related syndrome that affects children.
Hilda Solis, chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, says the county is seeing an increase in cases of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).
She says the province has seen 51 cases of MIS-C, including the death of one child. All cases were hospitalized and about half ended up in the ICU.
“It is heartbreaking that every day more than 14,000 Los Angeles County residents test positive for COVID-19,” Solis said. “It is even more painful to see more and more children becoming infected with MISC-C.”
“There is a misconception that COVID-19 only affects the elderly or those with underlying health problems. At this point in the crisis, we can say with certainty that COVID-19 has serious consequences in people of all ages, including children, and even without. underlying health problems. In Los Angeles County, the Latinx community is most affected by COVID-19 and MISC-C cases. ”
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