Coronavirus Numbers In OC Decline As More Are Vaccinated

ORANGE COUNTY, CA —Things continue to improve in Orange County when it comes to coronavirus numbers. On Wednesday the county showed more declining cases of COVID-19, extending the tenuous hope of graduating to the less-restrictive red tier of the state's coronavirus reopening system by St. Patrick's Day.

One year ago, bar after bar closed their doors and failed to serve green beer, corned beef and cabbage, erring on the side of caution as local officials prepared to deal with the growing pandemic. Since that time, almost 250,000 Orange County residents have contracted coronavirus and just under 4,000 have died of the disease.

Still, as of Wednesday, hospitalization rates have dropped to 403 coronavirus patients at area hospitals, and 107 in intensive care.

The county has 30.8% of its intensive care unit beds and 65% of its ventilators available.
The county reported 9,713 tests, raising the cumulative total to 3,064,819.

Outbreaks -- defined as two or more confirmed cases within the past two weeks -- have declined significantly in the county's nursing homes, with just two skilled nursing facilities and three elderly assisted living facilities in that metric.

Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa, which is set to close on March 15, has just eight patients. That facility was reopened on Dec. 15 and has been dedicated to recuperating coronavirus patients who no longer need to be hospitalized.

The outbreak in the county's jails was also down to six infections, with three involving newly booked inmates. None of the inmates are hospitalized, and officials are awaiting the results of 549 tests.

The fatalities logged on Wednesday calculated that January's death toll has risen to 1,254. In December, 884 perished due to coronavirus, and in February, those numbers plummeted to 124. January was the deadliest month in Orange County since the start of the pandemic.

Vaccinations continue across the county, and totals will be updated Thursday. As of last week, nearly 600,000 residents of Orange County have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine, of those, 330,000 have been fully vaccinated.

The registration software, Othena, is currently booking vaccination times for those who registered on or before Jan. 23, the site says. Thus far, Othena has guided 215,294 through the vaccination process, and appointments have been scheduled for 235,094. A total of 772,038 patients have used the system to register for appointments, and an additional 321,650 are in the waiting room until more vaccines arrive.