RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KNX) — COVID-19 hospitalizations in Riverside County jumped 30% over the past two weeks, reaching 317 patients on Sunday, according to state data.
It marked a significant departure from steady hospitalization levels throughout November. New cases have averaged roughly 530 a day, up from an average of 410 a day in November as well.
Officials have not yet attributed the uptick to the onset of the Omicron variant.
“We expected there would be an increase in cases and hospitalizations after the Thanksgiving holiday,” Jose Arballo Jr., spokesperson for Riverside County’s health department, told The Riverside Press-Enterprise. “That’s been the pattern throughout the pandemic, whenever we have had a major holiday.”
The spike thus far was “nothing close to what we saw a year ago," Arballo said.
In neighboring San Bernardino County, the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 surpassed 400 on two of the last three days, according to state data.
Hospitalizations across the county have risen nearly 16% from 348 on Dec. 5 to 403 in the last two weeks.
Officials once again blamed the jump on Thanksgiving travel and gatherings last month.
“We’ve had a gradual increase that, really, we think is because of people socializing and getting together for the holidays,” Dr. Troy Pennington, emergency room doctor and emergency medical services physician at the county’s Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton, told The San Bernardino Sun. “This is a much more mild increase than what we have seen previously."
Still, Pennington cautioned that the Omicron variant could complicate things. Though evidence has suggested Omicron's symptoms aren't as drastic as other variants (especially for vaccinated people who've had their booster shot), early data has indicated it is far more contagious.
