Second Doses Remain Priority In L.A. County COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout

Posted by: KHTS Newsroom in Coronavirus, Santa Clarita Latest News February 12, 2021 - 2:13 pm 0 1,066 Views

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LADPH) officials announced that large-scale COVID-19 vaccination sites, such as the one at Six Flags Magic Mountain, will be focusing on offering second doses of COVID-19 vaccines next week due to continued scarcity.

On Friday, LADPH Science Officer Dr. Paul Simon confirmed that county health officials would continue to focus on administering second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine into the coming week.

“Right now, as more vaccine comes into L.A. County, our priority is to provide second doses to the people who are ready for them next week,” he said. “While the supply of doses, including first doses, are very limited at this time, it is our hope that we will see larger allocations in the near future.”

Simon’s update comes as health officials at the various large-scale vaccination sites, including Six Flags Magic Mountain, have only administered second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine throughout the week due to a “short supply of vaccines from the state.”

The county received 219,700 doses of the vaccine this week, a near-20% increase in the number of doses received the week before.

As of Friday, Feb. 12, an estimated 1,345,949 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered throughout the county, almost 78% of which were first doses, according to Simon.

This means that roughly 3.8% of all Los Angeles County residents aged 16 and over have been fully vaccinated.

On Friday, LADPH officials urged county residents to “take extra measures to protect each other as the Lunar New Year, Valentine’s Day, and Presidents Day holidays approach.”

“Our daily case counts remain high, which means that the risk of interacting with someone unknowingly infected with COVID-19 also remains high,” said LAPDH Health Officer Dr. Muntu Davis. “Not enough time has passed for us to know the impact of the Super Bowl weekend.”

Officials added that it was “critically important” that residents not attend any private gatherings or leave their home if they either are experiencing symptoms of illness, have tested positive for COVID-19, or if they have been exposed or likely have been exposed to someone who is positive.

See Related: L.A. County Only Administering Second COVID-19 Vaccine Doses For Remainder Of Week

An additional 3,497 COVID-19 cases were reported in Los Angeles County on Friday, along with 137 deaths, according to the LADPH.

This brings the county’s cumulative total to 1,161,773 positive cases of COVID-19 and 18,789 deaths since the onset of the pandemic, according to the department.

Testing results are available for over 5,662,000 people, with 19 percent of people testing positive.

As of Friday, there were 3,604 people hospitalized with COVID-19, 30 percent of which were in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

The Southern California Region has 10.6% staffed adult ICU capacity remaining as of the state’s last update on Tuesday, Feb. 9, according to state health officials.

Residents are encouraged to continue to prevent the spread of COVID-19, to not gather in crowds, stay home when sick, wear a face covering and maintain physical distance from others when outside of the home.

A travel advisory remains in effect for L.A. County. Anyone who is arriving in Los Angeles County must self-quarantine for 10 days. Residents are asked to remain at home or lodging for the 10 days and avoid contact with others.

See Related: L.A. County Only Administering Second COVID-19 Vaccine Doses For Remainder Of Week

On Friday,67 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the Santa Clarita Valley, with 24,359 cumulative cases having been reported in the valley since March of 2020, according to the LADPH. These cases include:

18,338 in the City of Santa Clarita* (+51)
42 in the unincorporated areas of Bouquet Canyon
746 in the unincorporated areas of Canyon Country (+2)
3,512 in Castaic* (+10)
66 in the unincorporated areas of Newhall
14 in San Francisquito/Bouquet Canyon
15 in unincorporated Sand Canyon
125 in the unincorporated areas of Saugus
35 in the unincorporated areas of Saugus/Canyon Country (-1)
995 in Stevenson Ranch (+3)
299 in the unincorporated areas of Val Verde (+2)
169 in the unincorporated areas of Valencia

In nearby Acton, there have been 417 cumulative cases (+5), as well as 244 cases in Agua Dulce (+2).

*As of Wednesday, Feb. 10, public health officials have recorded 1,956 cumulative cases have been reported at the Peter J. Pitchess Detention Center, including 1,425 at the North County Correctional Facility. Those cases are distributed between both the City of Santa Clarita and Castaic totals. Those cases are distributed between both the City of Santa Clarita and Castaic totals.

There were 39 COVID-19 patients in Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital as of Friday, Feb. 12, while 1,099 patients have been discharged since the hospital’s first case was reported in March 2020, according to Patrick Moody, spokesperson for the hospital.

Three additional deaths were reported Friday, with a total of 133 coronavirus deaths at the hospital, with at least 227 COVID-19 deaths reported across the Santa Clarita Valley since March 2020.

See All Coronavirus Coverage: Coronavirus Coverage – COVID-19 Map