42,115 New Positive Cases and 102 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County

LOS ANGELES, CA, Jan 20 – LA County is reporting 102 new deaths today, the highest number of deaths reported in a single day since March 10th, 2021. The number of new deaths has doubled in just one week and 90% of the deaths reported today are among residents who became ill with COVID after December 24th, indicating the high likelihood of infection with the Omicron variant. As deaths often lag behind surges in cases and hospitalizations, we may see an even higher number of deaths in the coming weeks.

Throughout the pandemic, Latinx and Black residents have experienced the worst health outcomes for COVID, with the gaps becoming even wider during surges. Currently, Latinx residents have the highest case rate with 3,600 cases per 100,000 people, a 1,900% increase compared to one month prior. Black residents have the second highest current case rate with nearly 2,700 cases per 100,000, with a 1,400% increase in just one month. Asian residents have seen the steepest percent increase of 2,400%, or 2,300 cases per 100,000, while White residents have seen an 1,100% increase over the past month at 2,100 cases per 100,000.

Hospitalizations show a similar pattern, as Black and Latinx residents are hospitalized at higher rates than White and Asian residents. For the two-week period through January 8th, the hospitalization rate for Black residents was 47 per 100,000 people. For Latinx residents it was 29 hospitalizations per 100,000 people, for White residents 17 per 100,000 and for Asian residents 8 per 100,000, with the gap between Black residents and Asian residents nearly six-fold.

When comparing death rates across races/ethnicities, a similar gap is noted. The rate of deaths for Black residents is 3.5 deaths per 100,000 people and 3 deaths per 100,000 for Latinx residents. This is compared to the lower death rate for White residents at 2.5 deaths per 100,000 residents and Asian residents at 1 death per 100,000 residents. Given that deaths lag hospitalizations by several weeks, we may see increases across all race and ethnicity groups, along with a further widening of these gaps, in the weeks to come.

“To everyone devastated by the loss of someone they love from COVID, please know that I join with others in sending my thoughts and prayers for healing and peace, “,” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health. “The higher rates of cases, hospitalizations, and deaths among Black and Latinx residents is a tragedy that reflects both long standing inequities to the resources that promote good health and policies and practices that marginalize the concerns of people of color. The resulting distressing lack of confidence in the COVID vaccines among some residents in the hardest communities, contributes to the widening gaps in health outcomes we are seeing again during this surge. Closing these gaps needs to remain a shared priority in order to protect entire communities and end the pandemic.”

Today, Public Health confirmed 102 additional deaths and 42,115 new cases of COVID-19. Of the 102 new deaths reported today, two people were between the ages of 18 and 29, three were between the ages of 30 and 49, 20 were between the ages of 50 and 64, 34 were between the ages of 65-79, and 39 were over the age of 80 years old. Of the 102 newly reported deaths, 81 had underlying conditions. Information on the four deaths reported by the City of Long Beach is available at www.LongBeach.gov. To date, the total number of deaths in L.A. County is 28,282.

Public Health has identified a total 2,385,721 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County. Today’s positivity rate is 17.6%.

There are 4,814 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized. Testing results are available for more than 10,762,700 individuals, with 20% of people testing positive.