Continued Increases In COVID-19 Transmission, Hospitalizations Indicate Need for Common-Sense Protections Against Infection

Over the past week in Los Angeles County, there have been notable, yet not unexpected, increases in COVID-19 reported cases, hospitalizations and deaths. While recent increases are significant, they remain considerably below last winter’s peak and common-sense protections are strongly recommended to help curb transmission and severe illness as the new year begins.

Since last week, the reported daily average of COVID-19 cases has increased by more than 25 percent, from 495 to 621. This number is an undercount due to the large number of home test results for COVID-19 that are not reported to Public Health. The daily average of COVID-positive hospitalizations increased by nearly 15 percent over the same time period, from 604 to 686, and the Hospital Admission Level for the county, reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), increased from 6.5 to 8.3 new COVID-19 hospitalization admissions per 100,000 people for data through Dec. 16. Sadly, there has also been an appreciable increase in the daily average deaths due to COVID-19. This week Public Health is reporting a daily average of 5 deaths, an increase from 2 earlier this month on Dec. 6.

To help stem the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses, residents should prioritize common-sense precautions to protect themselves and others. Stay home if you are sick and test if you have symptoms or were exposed to COVID-19, especially when visiting with people who are more vulnerable to severe illness due to age or underlying health conditions. Wash your hands often and a well-fitted, high-quality mask can help protect against transmission in crowded indoor spaces, including airports, train stations or places with poor ventilation.

If Los Angeles County residents have questions about COVID-19, flu or RSV, including where to get vaccinated and how or when to test for COVID-19, the Public Health InfoLine is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week, with the exception of Jan. 1, at 1-833-540-0473.

Public Health reports COVID-19 data weekly. The following table shows case, wastewater, emergency department, hospitalization, and death data in Los Angeles County over the past four weeks.

Metric	Date of Weekly Report
Metric	12/27/2023	12/20/2023	12/13/2023	12/6/2023
Daily average cases	621	495	430	380
SARS-CoV-2 wastewater concentration as a percentage of the Winter 2022-2023 peak concentration value	36%	39%	38%	28%
Daily average of the percent of Emergency Department (ED) encounters classified as coronavirus-related	4.8%	4.6%	4.0%	3.7%
Daily average number of COVID-positive hospitalizations	686	604	525	465
Daily average deaths	4.9	3.6	2.1	1.9
Percent of all deaths due to COVID-19	2.1%	2.3%	2.8%	2.4%
All daily averages are 7-day averages. Data for past weeks are subject to change in future reports. Time periods covered by each metric: cases = week ending each Saturday; wastewater = week ending each Saturday, with a one-week lag; ED data = week ending each Sunday; hospitalizations = week ending each Saturday; deaths = week ending each Monday, with a three-week lag; death percentage = week ending Monday, with a one-week lag. Case data is presented by episode date, an approximation of the date the illness began, and death data is presented by date of death. This is a change from how case and death data were presented prior to July 26, 2023, which was by date of report. Daily average cases do not include Long Beach and Pasadena; daily average deaths include Long Beach and Pasadena.

• A wide range of data and dashboards on COVID-19 from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are available on the Public Health website at http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/COVIDdata including:

• COVID-19 Locations & Demographics (data by demographic characteristics and geography, active outbreaks, and citations)

• COVID -19 Response Plan

• COVID -19 Vaccinations

• Skilled Nursing Facility Metrics

Always check with trusted sources for the latest accurate information about novel coronavirus:

• Los Angeles County Department of Public Health:

http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/

• California Department of Public Health: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Immunization/nCOV2019.aspx

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – Spanish:

https://espanol.cdc.gov/enes/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

• World Health Organization https://www.who.int/health -topics/coronavirus

• LA County residents can also call 2-1-1

Cases through 12:00pm 12/25/2023
	Total Cases
Laboratory Confirmed Cases (includes LB and Pas through 6/27/23; excludes LB and Pas after 6/27/23)	3,843,107
Deaths (includes LB and Pas)	37,109
Cases by Age Group (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- 0 to 4	117,324
- 5 to 11	285,511
- 12 to 17	280,417
- 18 to 29	771,133
- 30 to 49	1,159,806
- 50 to 64	635,035
- 65 to 79	282,787
- over 80	103,469
- Under Investigation	2,632
Cases by Gender (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Female	1,882,190
- Male	1,664,238
- Other	1,938
- Under Investigation	89,748
Cases by Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	6,927
- Asian	272,836
- Black	194,336
- Hispanic/Latino	1,543,832
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	18,152
- White	510,430
- Other	421,144
- Under Investigation	670,457
Hospitalization (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- Hospitalized (Ever)	191,462
Deaths by Race/Ethnicity (Los Angeles County Cases Only-excl LB and Pas)
- American Indian/Alaska Native	83
- Asian	4,629
- Black	3,295
- Hispanic/Latino	17,043
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	115
- White	9,445
- Other	489
- Under Investigation	112
CITY / COMMUNITY**	Cases	Case Rate
City of Agoura Hills	6555	31389
City of Alhambra	26368	30405
City of Arcadia	14214	24611
City of Artesia	6234	37118
City of Avalon	299	7728
City of Azusa	17912	35795
City of Baldwin Park	30364	39552
City of Bell	17277	47553
City of Bell Gardens	17438	40487
City of Bellflower	31544	40579
City of Beverly Hills	11983	34713
City of Bradbury	71	6642
City of Burbank	33905	31634
City of Calabasas	6118	25153
City of Carson	36124	38493
City of Cerritos	13908	27779
City of Claremont	10705	29342
City of Commerce*	5967	45658
City of Compton	41262	41302
City of Covina	20859	42542
City of Cudahy	12386	50873
City of Culver City	12444	31215
City of Diamond Bar	14108	24529
City of Downey	47816	41847
City of Duarte	7713	35034
City of El Monte	43765	37320
City of El Segundo	4233	25217
City of Gardena	22708	37038
City of Glendale	62096	30072
City of Glendora	15613	29590
City of Hawaiian Gardens	5130	34955
City of Hawthorne	30556	34415
City of Hermosa Beach	4902	24921
City of Hidden Hills	395	20899
City of Huntington Park	26730	44936
City of Industry	1062	243021
City of Inglewood	39936	35161
City of Irwindale	908	62234
City of La Canada Flintridge	4747	22940
City of La Habra Heights	215	3941
City of La Mirada	14681	29599
City of La Puente	16300	40052
City of La Verne	9500	28544
City of Lakewood	27949	34779
City of Lancaster*	66055	40883
City of Lawndale	10900	32427
City of Lomita	6348	30624
City of Lynwood*	31971	44375
City of Malibu	2984	23023
City of Manhattan Beach	7723	21453
City of Maywood	13104	46718
City of Monrovia	12245	31559
City of Montebello	26063	40486
City of Monterey Park	18098	29067
City of Norwalk	44069	40948
City of Palmdale	68525	43106
City of Palos Verdes Estates	2380	17601
City of Paramount	23201	41413
City of Pico Rivera	28693	44635
City of Pomona	67177	43081
City of Rancho Palos Verdes	8224	19239
City of Redondo Beach	16301	23729
City of Rolling Hills	313	16134
City of Rolling Hills Estates	1644	20264
City of Rosemead	15675	28320
City of San Dimas*	11404	33040
City of San Fernando	13056	53047
City of San Gabriel	11990	29277
City of San Marino	2529	19048
City of Santa Clarita	76386	34654
City of Santa Fe Springs	8044	43803
City of Santa Monica	27742	30009
City of Sierra Madre	2539	23105
City of Signal Hill	4219	35763
City of South El Monte	8593	41144
City of South Gate	48025	48928
City of South Pasadena	6555	25160
City of Temple City	11069	30363
City of Torrance	35960	24091
City of Vernon	361	172727
City of Walnut	7794	25527
City of West Covina	40654	37561
City of West Hollywood	11632	31480
City of Westlake Village	459	5490
City of Whittier	32017	36619
Los Angeles	1569110	38795
Los Angeles - Adams-Normandie	3278	39966
Los Angeles - Alsace	4653	37389
Los Angeles - Angeles National Forest	0	0
Los Angeles - Angelino Heights	859	34333
Los Angeles - Arleta	17290	50305
Los Angeles - Atwater Village	5219	35586
Los Angeles - Baldwin Hills	10627	34143
Los Angeles - Bel Air	2550	30253
Los Angeles - Beverly Crest	3451	27553
Los Angeles - Beverlywood	4346	32992
Los Angeles - Boyle Heights*	41222	47445
Los Angeles - Brentwood	8751	28270
Los Angeles - Brookside	158	27194
Los Angeles - Cadillac-Corning	2351	33015
Los Angeles - Canoga Park	26008	39835
Los Angeles - Carthay	4562	31762
Los Angeles - Central	17252	44245
Los Angeles - Century City	3921	30652
Los Angeles - Century Palms/Cove	16678	49393
Los Angeles - Chatsworth	13419	36208
Los Angeles - Cheviot Hills	2661	29015
Los Angeles - Chinatown	3046	37975
Los Angeles - Cloverdale/Cochran	5460	37518
Los Angeles - Country Club Park	5036	33234
Los Angeles - Crenshaw District	5531	39996
Los Angeles - Crestview	4101	36075
Los Angeles - Del Rey	8777	29319
Los Angeles - Downtown*	16549	60163
Los Angeles - Eagle Rock	14226	35934
Los Angeles - East Hollywood	9809	33493
Los Angeles - Echo Park	4603	32288
Los Angeles - El Sereno	17314	41413
Los Angeles - Elysian Park	1883	32966
Los Angeles - Elysian Valley	3658	35965
Los Angeles - Encino	15751	34869
Los Angeles - Exposition	1325	39838
Los Angeles - Exposition Park	18586	41379
Los Angeles - Faircrest Heights	1300	36111
Los Angeles - Figueroa Park Square	3894	44651
Los Angeles - Florence-Firestone	23256	49017
Los Angeles - Glassell Park	11296	35742
Los Angeles - Gramercy Place	4332	40245
Los Angeles - Granada Hills	22334	38381
Los Angeles - Green Meadows	10306	47924
Los Angeles - Hancock Park	4872	28593
Los Angeles - Harbor City	9746	33526
Los Angeles - Harbor Gateway	16169	37085
Los Angeles - Harbor Pines	664	27563
Los Angeles - Harvard Heights	6291	34882
Los Angeles - Harvard Park	18448	48631
Los Angeles - Highland Park	17667	36509
Los Angeles - Historic Filipinotown	5618	40505
Los Angeles - Hollywood	22291	32659
Los Angeles - Hollywood Hills	7910	26874
Los A #####