San Diego County public health officials reported 3,815 new cases of coronavirus and 37 deaths Wednesday, acknowledging “a bumpy path” for vaccinations.
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher said the county has received just over 100,000 vaccine doses, and “well over 50,000” have been administered, but reporting is lagging and being addressed.
“Invariably it is going to be a bumpy path,” he said during a livestreamed media briefing. “People every day in San Diego County are being vaccinated.”
He said vaccinations are still in Phase 1A, which includes healthcare workers and employees and residents of long-term care facilities. He urged anyone in that category to immediately contact their normal healthcare provider to schedule a vaccination.
Fletcher said COVID-19 hospitalizations rose to a record 1,664 on Wednesday, with 384 patients in intensive care. There are currently just 39 open and staffed ICU beds available in San Diego County.
“The holidays hit us incredibly hard. We saw what happened with the the surge surrounding Thanksgiving. We are anticipating an uptick in cases as a result of Christmas and New Year’s,” said Fletcher.
Dr. Wilma Wooten said the state is requiring all hospitals to submit a “crisis care” plan for handling coronavirus cases by the end of Wednesday.
Asked about efforts to bring restaurants and other businesses into compliance, Fletcher said 90% of business that are sent a cease-and-desist letter comply without further incident.
Out of 26,320 test results received in the past day, 14.5% were positive, and the 14-day rolling average ticked up to 13.4%.
The latest victims of COVID-19 were 21 men and 16 women ranging in age from their 50s to 90s.
Since the first local case in March, there have been 2,858,583 tests administered in San Diego County resulting in 176,662 cases and 1,691 deaths.
— Updated at 9:15 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021