COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Los Angeles County, as do the number of people hospitalized with infections, as the typical summer surge of the disease intensifies.
Among those who recently tested positive for the coronavirus was Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, whose office disclosed the result Friday morning, shortly before she spoke at a virtual press conference via Zoom. The mayor first tested positive in June 2023.
The COVID surge in California comes as coronavirus levels in the state’s wastewater remain high, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Doctors have noted an earlier-than-normal surge for this time of year, starting in May in Los Angeles County. The mid-year surge in COVID cases and hospitalizations in the counties didn’t begin until early July in 2021 and 2023, though in 2022 it began in early May.
For the week ending June 23, according to the most recent data available, reported cases averaged 215 per day, up from 154 the week before. A month earlier – for the week ending May 26 – an average of 83 cases per day were reported.
The official count is an underestimate because it only includes tests conducted in medical facilities. The count does not reflect positive tests at home and does not account for the fact that far fewer people are tested once sick. But the counts remain useful for spotting trends, such as when COVID is on the rise.
The latest tally shows the highest number of new coronavirus cases per day since the February count, as the virus’s winter peak tends to wane. The peak rate in winter was 621 cases per day; last summer, it was 571 cases per day.
The rate at which COVID tests are coming back with positive results is increasing across California. For the week ending June 24, 9% of tests were positive; a month earlier, the positivity rate was 3.4%. The peak rate last summer was 13.1%.
New subvariants of the coronavirus, called FLiRT, are increasingly outcompeting the previous dominant strain of the virus.
The new FLiRT subvariants, officially known as KP.3, KP.2 and KP.1.1, are believed to be about 20% more transmissible than their parent, JN.1, the dominant winter subvariant, said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at UC San Francisco.
For the two-week period ending June 22, according to the most recent information available, 62.9% of estimated COVID specimens in the United States came from the FLiRT variants – compared to 45.3% a month earlier.
Despite their increased transmissibility, the new mutations do not appear to cause more severe disease.
Coronavirus hospitalizations are also on the rise. For the week ending June 22, there were an average of 153 patients per day in Los Angeles County hospitals, up from 138 the week before. Last summer’s peak was 620 patients per day on average, and winter’s peak was 825.
The share of emergency room visits related to coronavirus is also up. For the week ending June 23,
2.1% of emergency room visits in LA County were coronavirus-related; a month earlier, that figure was 1.2%. Last summer, that share peaked at 5.1% in late August.
Despite these increases, coronavirus levels in Los Angeles County wastewater have remained largely stable recently. For the week ending June 15, according to the most recent data available, coronavirus levels in wastewater were 17% of the 2022-23 winter peak. This is a slight increase from 15% the previous week, which was an increase from 13% the week before. But the previous week, the level was 16%.
Last summer, coronavirus levels in Los Angeles County wastewater peaked at 38% of the winter 2022-23 peak.
A number of locations in California have seen increased levels of coronavirus in wastewater. Santa Clara County, Northern California’s most populous, continues to report high levels of coronavirus across part of Silicon Valley, from San Jose to Palo Alto.
Fourteen states, including California, have high or very high levels of coronavirus in their wastewater. California is among nine states with high levels, along with Arkansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. The five states with very high levels of coronavirus in wastewater are Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.
COVID death rates have remained stable in LA County. For the week ending June 4, according to the most recent information available, the county average was less than one COVID death per day.
Summer surges of the virus typically coincide with increased travel and group gatherings. And since most of the population has long since ditched their masks, the risk of infection is higher. The fact that most vaccinated people are far from their final COVID-19 booster shot further increases the risk of infection.
In California, 36.2% of seniors have received at least one dose of the updated COVID vaccine since September when it was introduced. Only 18.3% of adults aged 50 to 64 received an updated vaccine during this period; among younger adults, up to age 49, only 9.7% did so.
The CDC says anyone 6 months and older should have received at least one updated dose since September, or two doses for people 65 and older who are four months behind on their first updated dose.
People who are immunocompromised may receive an additional updated dose two months after the last recommended dose and can discuss with their health care providers whether additional doses are needed.
A new, updated version of the COVID-19 vaccine is expected in the fall. On Thursday, the CDC recommended that once the vaccine is released, perhaps starting in September, everyone 6 months and older should get the updated 2024-25 version of the vaccine.
“Our number one recommendation to protect yourself and your loved ones from respiratory illness is to get vaccinated,” CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen said in a statement. “Plan now for you and your family to receive up-to-date flu and COVID vaccines this fall, ahead of respiratory virus season. »