Intensive care units in hospitals in the Los Angeles area have been packed for weeks, with healthcare professionals struggling to treat an overwhelming number of patients with COVID-19.
The holiday season, with its travels and meetings, was seen as a major contributor to the sudden increase in early January.
This increase is stabilizing, although cases, deaths and hospitalizations remain higher than during the increase last summer.
Health experts are expressing cautious optimism – noting that the public still needs to take great precautions to prevent the virus from spreading.
“We are in a very good spot now,” said Dr. Anthony Cardillo, CEO of Mend Urgent Care. “We don’t want to see an inflection going in the wrong direction.”
The distribution of the vaccine is also likely to start helping to drop new infections. Thousands of shots are being fired at Dodger Stadium and elsewhere in the county.
The vaccination process began with those who had the greatest potential exposure to the virus and those most at risk of serious symptoms.
“We know that now that we have vaccinated healthcare professionals, the vaccinated nursing home population and thousands of people over 65 who have started receiving the vaccination sequence, we are seeing these results now,” said Cardillo. “And this is really helping to contribute to that decline.”
With California home stay requests relaxed, restaurants are open again for al fresco dining, but health officials say people should only dine with relatives and others who live in the same house.
And they are reminding everyone to remain vigilant.
“We have to maintain our sensitivity and common sense about what really decreases the transmission of this virus.”
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