Los Angeles County Public Health officials reported the highest number of daily COVID-19 cases in the county’s history on Friday, as well as the highest number in the Santa Clarita Valley.
In a statement released via its website and social media, Department of Public Health officials said that cases have nearly doubled in the last two days with 1 out of every 4 cases testing positive, and that in the last 24 hours 27,091 cases had been reported.
While this brings the Los Angeles County total to 1,696,582 cases, the number of deaths increased by 12 in the last day — bringing the total number of deaths to 27,637 since the onset of the pandemic.
In the Santa Clarita Valley, 771 new cases were reported in the last day, dwarfing the previous record set earlier week of 558 cases in a single day by 31.1%.
“Indoor parties, in particular, create significant risk as this virus can be spread through aerosolized droplets,” officials said in a statement released Friday. “Older individuals, those with underlying health conditions, and those who are immunocompromised should take additional precautions by not attending indoor gatherings with non-household members during this surge.”
In L.A. County, there are approximately 1,365 people currently hospitalized with COVID-19 and the daily positivity rate has reached 22.4% for those who are tested. A week earlier, the positivity rate was 11.4%.
“Evidence suggests that only those who have recently completed their vaccination series or are boosted have significant protection from becoming infected with the highly contagious Omicron variant,” Public Health officials added. “This leaves millions of people across L.A. County vulnerable to COVID infection.”
All COVID-19 services are free to L.A. County residents and can be accessed by anyone regardless of insurance or immigration status. To find a COVID-19 vaccine site near you, visit VaccinateLACounty.com, or to find a testing site, visit covid19.lacounty.gov/testing.
Public Health officials also released the following updated COVID-19 statistics Friday:
Countywide COVID-19 cases reported in the past 24 hours: 27,091
Total COVID-19 cases in L.A. County: 1,696,582
New deaths related to COVID-19 reported in the past 24 hours: 12
Total COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County: 27,637
Hospitalizations countywide: 1,365
Hospitalizations at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital as of Dec.31: 34, with 1,728 discharged since the onset of the pandemic.
COVID-19 cases reported in the Santa Clarita Valley in the past 24 hours: 771, 590 of which came from the city of Santa Clarita.
Total COVID-19 cases in the SCV: 43,996
Total COVID-19 deaths in the SCV as of Dec. 30: 375
Percentage of vaccinated people (at least one dose) in the city of Santa Clarita as of Dec. 23: 78.6%
Percentage of vaccinated people (at least one dose) in the SCV as of Dec. 23: 75.1%
