Pasadena: Public health officials in Pasadena reported 27 new infections and no additional deaths on Wednesday. The city’s pandemic totals stood at 12,196 COVID-19 cases and 353 fatalities.The average number of daily infections reported over the prior week declined for a third straight day to 27.4, according to Pasadena Public Health Department data.
Huntington Hospital officials reported treating 25 COVID-19 patients as of Tuesday, with five of them being treated in intensive care units.
LA County: For weeks, L.A. County Department of Public Health officials have been reporting the latest coronavirus surge was outpacing hospitalizations at two times the rate — a welcome glimmer of hope that the delta variant-driven outbreak was not following similar patterns of past surges when hospitalizationswere proportional to cases.
But that appears to be changing, the county’s public health chief said Thursday.
From July 4 to Aug. 4, coronavirus cases rose by about 387% and hospitalizations about 366%, Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in an update, making them close to equal.
This alarming increase in the rise of hospitalizations serves as a stark reminder that a surge in the coronavirus has led to a 366% increase in hospitalizations in one month, officials say.
this virus causes debilitating and dangerous illness among many who are infected,” Ferrer said, adding that the percent of positive cases has risen to 8%.
That appears to be having an impact on the county’s death toll, officials said Thursday. The seven-day average number of daily coronavirus-linked fatalities has ticked up to seven, a jump from between four and five a month earlier. Ferrer acknowledged that the numbers of COVID- 19 fatalities remained relatively low, but “particularly sad” given that they could have been prevented.
As of Sunday, 5,527,445 L.A. County residents have been fully vaccinated.
There were glimpses of hope in Ferrer’s latest update, which was a mixed bag. The daily average daily case rate (with a threeday lag) is 27.8 cases per 100,000 people. That’s a 32% increase from last week’s 21 cases per 100,000, Ferrer said. But the 4.5% positivity rate is a slight decrease from last week same-day rate of 4.7%, she said. Given the increased testing happening under new mandates,
Twenty-three new deaths from the virus were reported Thursday, bringing the total dead since the virus spread into the county last year to 24,739. The 3,865 new reported cases drove the total up to 1,339,138. The department — continually searching for ways to keep metrics down — issued a new order Thursday requiring Los Angeles County health care workers to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 30.
Ferrer had promised the order earlier in the week as officials began seeing a rise in cases among health care workers.
The move aligns with last week’s state order, both of which apply to health care workers, including volunteers, contractors, students and part- and full-time employees. The county’s order also applies to emergency medical technicians and paramedics, dental office workers and home health workers.
There are medical and religious exemptions, but those people must be tested one to two times a week, depending on the type of facility in which they work. The order also requires exempt health care workers to wear respiratory protection such as medical grade masks or N95s at all times. They more effectively prevents the virus from spreading, compared to cloth face coverings common among the general public.
Ferrer said the public can expect the number of cases to rise in the coming weeks as more schools and businesses adhere to testing requirements mandated by authorities and those issued by private entities.
Still, it was hospitalizations that appeared at the top of public health officials’ worry list. Thursday, 1,645 people were hospitalized, with 361 in intensive care units. The number of available ICU beds in the county has dropped to fewer than 500, according to the state’s metrics. Ferrer said medical centers likely will not see the kind of drain on capacity experienced in past surges of the virus.
But they are seeing increasing numbers of mainly unvaccinated people whose serious illness and potential death could be prevented.
It was that push for vaccinations that continued to dominate Ferrer’s update, even as she touted the impact vaccinations were having as doing what they are supposed to do.
She pointed to data showing that of 5,092,592 people out of the county’s 10.3 million people that had been vaccinated, as of
Monday, 21,532 had tested positive, 549 had been hospitalized and 55 had died. While that number appears to be increasing, it makes up .0011% of those vaccinated who have died.
Vaccinations: Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a statewide policy requiring all school teachers and employees in the state to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or submit to weekly testing.
Newsom’s announcement comes on the heels of calls from local parents and elected officials for the PUSD school board to require vaccinations. Despite the calls, the item never came up for a vote by the school board.
The Delta variant is more contagious than Delta prime and more cities are reporting an increase in cases among children. Those numbers are expected to rise as schools open across the country.
On Tuesday, school board member Tina Fredericks called for a special meeting today for a vote on mandatory vaccinations.
With the newly provided blessing of the federal government, Los Angeles County health officials on Saturday will begin offering third doses of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for people with severely compromised immune systems.
The Pasadena Public Health Department was still looking into when and how it might follow suit, pending further clinical guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, city spokeswoman Lisa Derderian said Friday evening.
Among those qualifying for the booster shots are organ transplant recipients, people undergoing cancer treatment, HIV patients and people on select “immunosuppressive medications.” The Los Angeles County Public Health Department urged people to consult their doctors to confirm their eligibility for the third shot, which should be administered at least 28 days following the second dose.
The third doses will be offered at vaccination sites in the county offering the Pfizer and Moderna shots. People looking for the shots will be able to simply “self-attest” that they have a qualifying medical condition.
Unempoyment: Unemployment claims in California rose last week, climbing to their highest level in nearly three months.
California workers filed 68,556 initial claims for unemployment during the week ending Aug. 7, an increase from the 62,209 claims workers filed over the week ending on July 31, the U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday. The jobless claims filed in California last represented the largest number of filings since late May. California workers filed 72,000 initial claims for unemployment during the week that ended on May 29. Claims nationwide fell to 375,000 unemployment claims last week, down 12,000 from the 387,000 claims that were filed the week before that.
Consumer Confidence: U.S. consumer sentiment fell in early August to the lowest level in nearly
a decade as Americans grew more concerned about the economy’s prospects, inflation and the recent surge in coronavirus cases.
The University of Michigan’s preliminary sentiment index fell by 11 points to 70.2, the lowest since December 2011, data released Friday showed. The figure fell well short of all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
The slump in confidence risks a more pronounced slowing in economic growth in coming months should consumers rein in spending. The recent deterioration in sentiment highlights how rising prices and concerns about the delta variant’s potential impact on the economy are weighing on Americans.
The expectations gauge plummeted almost 14 points to 65.2, the lowest since October 2013. A measure of consumers’ outlook for the economy over the coming year soured, falling the most since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020.
Only 36% of respondents expect a decline in the jobless rate, down from 52% the prior month, despite record job openings. Consumers also became decidedly downbeat about their income prospects. The gauge of expected personal finances fell to a seven-year low.
New round of California grants for non-profit cultural institutions: Round 8: Nonprofit cultural institutions only:
Application window: Friday, August 27th through Wednesday, September 8th. Eligible applicants: Only non-profit cultural institutions with any revenue size that meet eligibility criteria found at CAReliefGrant.com
Eligible grant award: $5,000 – $25,000. Details: Approximately $16 Million dollars remain under the Nonprofit Cultural Institutions Program. Eligible nonprofit cultural institutions must complete a new application even if they already applied in Rounds 1,2, 5, or 6.; nonprofit cultural institutions that applied in Round 4 do not need to re-apply; grants will only be available to nonprofit cultural institutions that did not receive funding in any previous rounds; grants will be prioritized based on the documented percentage revenue declines based on a reporting period comparing Q2 and Q3 of 2020 versus Q2 and Q3 of 2019
Round 9: New Applicants and Waitlisted applicants from certain previous rounds. Application window: Thursday, September 9th through Thursday, September 30th. Eligible applicants: current waitlisted applicants from certain previous rounds and new applicants that meet eligibility criteria found at CAReliefGrant.com. Eligible grant award: $5,000 – $25,000
Details: Applicants not selected to move forward in the review process in Rounds 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, or 7 do not need to re-apply and will be automatically moved into Round 9.
New applicants will need to apply at CAReliefGrant.com