Orange County Reports 1,964 New COVID-19 Cases As Hospitalizations Continue To Climb
SANTA ANA (CBSLA) — COVID-19 hospitalizations in Orange County continued to soar Monday as health officials reported nearly 30 more people had been admitted since Sunday.
The number of residents hospitalized rose from 848 on Sunday to 877 on Monday, and the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care increased from 209 to 218.
The Orange County Health Care Agency also reported 1,964 additional cases of coronavirus Monday but no new fatalities.
The newly confirmed cases brought the county's total caseload to 88,842 while the death toll remained at 1,633.
On Sunday, the county reported 15 coronavirus-related deaths. Last week, the county logged 41 deaths and 26 the week before.
Orange County was under the state's "regional stay-at-home" order, triggered after intensive-care unit bed availability fell below 15% last week.
On Saturday, the 11-county Southern California region's available ICU capacity was 12.5%, a decrease from 13.1% the day before. On Sunday, it dropped to 10.3% and on Monday it stood at 10.9%.
Orange County had 18% of its ICU beds and 53% of its ventilators available as of Monday, according to the Health Care Agency.
The last time the county's intensive care unit beds were this filled up was on July 23, when there were 215 patients. Last week, the county zoomed past a previous record of 722 hospitalized patients set on July 14.
The stay-at-home order will be in place for at least three weeks in an effort to keep people from gathering with different households.
Over the weekend, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes said his deputies would not enforce the order.
"Compliance with health orders is a matter of personal responsibility and not a matter of law enforcement," Barnes said. "The Orange County Sheriff's Department will remain consistent in our approach. Orange County sheriff's deputies will not be dispatched to, or respond to, calls for service to enforce compliance with face coverings, social gatherings or stay-at-home orders only. Deputies will respond to calls for potential criminal behavior and for the protection of life and property. Our actions remain consistent with the protections of constitutional rights.
"... As we have done throughout this pandemic, we must remain diligent in preventing the spread of the virus by following public health recommendations, like wearing a face covering and practicing social distancing," he said. "Conversely, policymakers must not penalize residents for earning a livelihood, safeguarding their mental health, or enjoying our most cherished freedoms."
(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)
