Los Angeles County continues to report a decline in the number of new coronavirus cases daily, but officials remain concerned that Super Bowl rallies could reverse course.
On Saturday, 4,860 new confirmed cases and 193 related deaths were reported, bringing the total number of fatalities across the country to 17,955, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The daily death toll has fallen steadily since mid-January, when the county averaged 241 deaths a day.
Still, those numbers remain much higher than before the peak, and officials say the community should take every precaution not to expose friends, family and colleagues to the disease.
“We express our deepest condolences to anyone who experiences the grief of losing a loved one to COVID-19,” said Barbara Ferrer, the province’s director of public health. “Despite seeing some declines, we continue to experience widespread community transmission in our province.”
Ferrer warned that the riskiest thing people can do on Sundays is to host or attend Super Bowl Sunday parties, potentially turning the game into a superspreader event. She urged residents to connect virtually or watch the game at home with those in their immediate household.
The province has introduced a number of restrictions: Private meetings are limited to 15 people, from no more than three households, and must be held outdoors, with participants wearing masks and keeping physical distance. Restaurants that were allowed to reopen their outdoor space last week may not have televisions available for customers to watch the game.
Los Angeles has seen significant relief from the virus in recent weeks. The seven-day average of new cases has dropped from about 15,100 to about 5,600 cases per day.
Still, hospital intensive care units remain tense and the death toll remains high. Statewide, more than 43,000 people have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.
Officials have also confirmed there are more cases of multi-system inflammatory syndrome, or MIS-C, a rare and potentially fatal viral disease that infects children exposed to the coronavirus. Symptoms include fever that does not go away and inflamed parts of the body including the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs.
Health officials confirmed nine additional cases of MIS-C on Saturday, bringing the total number of cases in LA County to 75 children, including one death. Latino children account for 76% of all reported MIS-C cases.
The supply of COVID-19 vaccines remains limited. Visit the Public Health Department website for information on LA County vaccines and to find out when it’s your turn.
Meanwhile, Orange County health officials reported 739 new cases of coronavirus and 33 additional deaths on Saturday, bringing the county’s total to 237,077 cases and 3,312 fatalities.