The County of San Diego released its latest figures of COVID-19 which confirmed a continued increase in hospitalizations, positive cases, and deaths.
An increased number of hospitalizations increased by 17 people to 1,309, according to the latest figures released on Sunday by the San Diego County’s Health and Human Services Agency. Four more patients were in intensive care, spiking the total to 211 from Saturday.
Despite the increase in hospitalizations, there are 165 available ICU beds which are 16 more from the last report. According to the county, many have discovered their COVID-19 status through hospital-mandated tests when being admitted for other reasons.
As of Friday, there are 11,235 new COVID-19 cases and seven additional deaths associated with the virus. Those numbers brought the county’s cumulative totals to 639,139 cases and 4,566 deaths since the pandemic began.
The county does not report COVID data on weekends.
County health officials continue to urge residents to avoid visiting hospital emergency departments unless it is needed to help alleviate the strain on local hospitals and prepare them for the expected surge in admissions.
Vaccines are encouraged by health officials to combat the transmissibility and severity of the virus. To date, there are 959,697 San Diegans that have received vaccine booster shots.
The California Department of Public Health recommends that you receive Pfizer or Moderna vaccines over Johnson and Johnson is available, according to California’s State Epidemiologist and Deputy Director of the Center for Infectious Diseases, Dr. Erica Pan.
The CDC recommends a Pfizer or Moderna booster shot five months after the second dose. A Johnson & Johnson booster is recommended two months after the second dose.
Those 12 and older have been authorized for Pfizer boosters, but Moderna and Johnson & Johnson boosters are only available for adults 18 years and older.
On Friday, the county reported 75,673 new tests. The seven-day average positivity rate was 27.5 percent, down from 29.3 percent on Tuesday.
Over 2.83 million San Diegans have received at least one dose of the vaccine. There are 2.5 million, or about 79.5 percent, who are fully vaccinated.
The United States, as of Jan. 23, reached 866,265 COVID-19-related deaths and over 70 million COVID-19 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University. Currently, 63% of the population is fully vaccinated, and 39.7% have received booster doses.
Last week, the federal government rolled out a program that allows every residential household in the United States to order up to four at-home COVID-19 test kits free of charge. Tests can be ordered online at COVIDtests.gov. Those ordering the test kits need only provide a name and address. No identification, credit card, or health insurance information is required. The county of San Diego has warned residents of price gouging and pandemic-related fraud to gain personal or financial information from others.
County health officials continue to urge residents to avoid COVID-19 testing at emergency departments at hospitals unless severe symptoms are present.
