All health workers in the county can now be vaccinated, including but not limited to those working in emergency care or primary care clinics, dental offices or pharmacies. Previously, only front-line workers in hospitals and nursing homes were allowed to take the photo.
Officials are trying to accelerate the rollout – which has been significantly slow as cases continue to increase – with the potential for vaccines to expire if not distributed in time.
RELATED: A Los Angeles Woman, 105, Dies of COVID-19 the Week She Was Given a Vaccine
The province wants to vaccinate 500,000 health workers by the end of January.
The five new vaccine distribution locations, expected to open nationwide next week, will complement the city-operated vaccination site opening this week at Dodger Stadium, which is the largest COVID-19 testing site in the land was.
The province already has dozens of vaccination sites scattered around the area that provide doses of the medication. The new high-capacity sites – whose sites have not been released – “will allow us to accelerate vaccinations for primary care health workers,” Barbara Ferrer, director of district health, said Monday.
“These five sites, in addition to our private partner sites, will enable us to complete an additional 500,000 vaccinations among our health workers by the end of January,” she said.
With vaccinations completed for most of the county’s health workers by the end of the month, the next phase of the distribution effort is expected to begin in early February. That stage, known as 1B, includes people aged 75 and over and some categories of key workers. In late March, the province hopes to begin Phase 1C, which would include people 50 and older, or those older than 16 with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk for serious illness.
MORE: 182 Arrested During Underground Parties In LA, LASD Says
The vaccination effort comes as the county and state continue to experience a spate of COVID-19 cases and deaths – with an average of one person dying in the county every eight minutes and 10 people testing positive every minute.
Ferrer said the province is “ rapidly picking up our pace to reach the grim milestone of 1 million cases. ”
With 12,617 new infections confirmed Monday, along with 122 announced by health officials in Pasadena and 88 by Long Beach, the total nationwide total since the start of the pandemic was 932,908. The province also announced a further 137 COVID-19 deaths on Monday, while Pasadena confirmed another fatal accident, bringing the nationwide death toll to 12,388.
Hospitals are still inundated with coronavirus patients, with only 650 beds available – including 48 intensive care beds – available as of Monday in the 70 ” medical centers receiving 911. But officials expressed some casual optimism about the flattening of new hospital admissions in recent days.
According to the state, as of Monday, there were 7,926 COVID-19 patients in LA County hospitals, including 1,724 in intensive care. Last week, the total number was 8,000. Gavin Newsom said Monday that in the past two weeks, the number of people hospitalized has risen 6% in the past 14 days, “one of the smallest increases we’ve seen in a two-week period in any time.
“It’s just a point of optimism, a little light,” said Newsom, also warning that there may still be a jump in hospital admissions given the recent winter break.
RELATED: LA County advises residents to wear masks at home when living with vulnerable people
Dr. Christina Ghaly, director of Los Angeles County Health Services, also noted that hospital admissions appear to have “stabilized” after dramatic spikes in recent weeks, but hospital overcrowding has still not eased. She noted that in the four counties hospitals, more than half of all inpatients are treated for COVID-19, and more than 75% of ICU patients have the virus. She said those figures are similar for other hospitals in the whole country.
“We still have patients admitted to the emergency department and we still have our clinical care teams caring for more patients than they would under normal circumstances,” Ghaly said.
“… There is still a staffing shortage across the country at all hospitals in healthcare facilities, and we are still in the middle of this deadly wave,” she said. We are looking very carefully at the data in the coming days. as this is the time we expect to see the increase in patient numbers after the recent Christmas and New Year holidays. ”
County Supervisor Hilda Solis, who again urged residents to adhere to infection control measures, such as wearing masks and staying at home as much as possible, starkly recalled the continuing severity of the pandemic and pointed out the pain of people who COVID death -19 in a hospital, separated from loved ones.
MORE: Gorillas Test Positive for Coronavirus at San Diego Zoo Safari Park
“Dying of COVID in the hospital only means dying,” Solis said. “… Families share their last goodbyes on tablets and mobile phones.”
Solis said she has heard stories from health professionals about such conversations, saying it often involves children or younger family members apologizing to parents or grandparents for bringing the virus into their homes.
“These excuses are some of the last words loved ones will ever hear when they die alone,” Solis said. Please don’t let this be your family. Don’t let this be your parents or grandparents. ‘
Since the start of the pandemic, about 5 million people have been tested for COVID-19 in the province, 18% of them positive.
City News Service contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2021 KABC-TV. All rights reserved.