LOS ANGELES (KNX) — Six months after it first emerged and quickly spread, the Delta variant remains the number one COVID-19 variant in Los Angeles County, health officials said Thursday, explaining that it accounts for 100% of cases sequenced.
The L.A. County Department of Public Health released new numbers indicating that the average daily case rate in L.A. is now almost nine cases per 100,000 people — a small increase from last week.
To date more than 1.5 million cases and a total of 26,949 deaths have been documented in the county.
"While the death rate among vaccinated people remains nearly flat, deaths among unvaccinated people are hovering in a range between seven and 13 deaths per 100,000 people," the county said in a statement.
"On October 30, the risk of death was 70 times higher among unvaccinated people than among those who had been vaccinated."
As transmission of the virus remains "substantial" in the County, schools continue to work to remain as safe as possible for in-person learning, health officials said, adding that the department monitors cases and close contact numbers among staff and students.
"Last week the County saw 500 student cases and more than 2,500 student close contacts," the department said.
"Among staff, there were about 100 cases and 100 close contacts. These case numbers represent continued declines in cases identified across all school districts."
In addition, the department said last week there was a 45% decline in student cases and a 47% decline in staff cases from the previous week.
Test positivity remains at 0.2% among students and staff being tested, with 0.2% identified as close contacts.
Vaccination information:
All Californians ages five and older are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.
To find a vaccination site or make an appointment at vaccination sites visit: www.VaccinateLACounty.com (English) and www.VacunateLosAngeles.com (Spanish).
Anyone without internet access, who does not know how to use a computer or who is over 65 years old may call 1-833-540-0473 for help finding an appointment, connecting to free transportation to and from a vaccination site, or scheduling a home-visit if they are homebound.
