LOS ANGELES (CNS) - After months of declining numbers, state and local health officials are reporting an uptick in COVID-19 transmission and an increase in the number of COVID-positive patients in hospitals.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health reported increased COVID-19 transmission for the fifth consecutive week on Thursday. The department logged an average of 512 daily cases for the most recent week in which data were available, a nearly 35% increase from the week before.
Daily average deaths were 1.7, up from 1 the previous week.
A majority of people who die with COVID-19 are elderly or have an underlying health condition such as diabetes, heart disease or hypertension, health officials have said.
County health officials said the increase "is likely the combined result of multiple factors, including summer travel, return to school, and the emergence of new COVID-19 variant strains."
Experts have said that wastewater concentrations of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, provide a more complete picture of virus levels in the community. This week, wastewater concentrations in LA County were at 28% of the 2022-23 winter peak and have been steadily increasing since July 12, when they were at 8% of the peak.
The department added that based on the most recent COVID-19 variant sequencing in the county as of July 22, XBB.1.5 and EG.5 now account for nearly equal proportions of COVID-19 cases, combined making up 31% of the total sequenced cases.
Some 98% of currently circulating strains in Los Angeles County are descendants of Omicron XBB, including EG.5, which is what the fall COVID-19 vaccine, likely to be released next month, will target. Los Angeles County has not detected BA.2.86 in recently sampled sequences, but it is being closely monitored because it has many mutations that may affect how our body responds to an infection.
The department also warned that people residing in skilled nursing facilities are especially vulnerable. This week, the number of new outbreaks opened in skilled nursing facilities rose to 39, up from 20 the week prior and 13 four weeks ago.
"As a result of the increased outbreaks, Public Health is working closely with local skilled nursing facilities to encourage adequate cleaning, infection control, and ventilation in the facility, as well as to communicate the importance of staff and visitors staying home when sick," officials said.
Meanwhile, the number of COVID-positive patients in LA County hospitals stood at 427 in the latest update provided by the state health department. That total had fallen below 150 in early July, but is still generally lower than it's been for most of the time since the pandemic began in March 2020.
The statewide total was 1,438, up from 647 in early July.
The data include all patients diagnosed with COVID-19 during their stay. It does not necessarily mean they were hospitalized because of COVID-19 complications or that they experienced COVID-19 symptoms.
Copyright 2023, City News Service, Inc.
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