Riverside County COVID Hospitalizations Plummet, Vaccination Revs

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — As COVID-19 hospitalizations continue plummeting in Riverside County, this week a big swath of residents will be newly eligible to receive the vaccine that protects against the virus.

On Thursday, residents 50 and older can begin making appointments for COVID-19 vaccination. This adds to the growing list of eligible residents, including people with certain underlying health conditions and/or disabilities, people in certain jobs sectors, and people who accompany eligible family members to their vaccine appointments. (See the full eligibility list here.)

The portal to make an appointment for vaccination at county-run and other sites can be accessed via www.rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine. Anyone who needs assistance may also call the county's 211 helpline.

On April 15, vaccination opens to everyone in the state 16 and older.

Riverside County residents 16 and older who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 stood at 16.2 percent on Monday, according to Riverside University Health System.

The expanded vaccination eligibility comes as Riverside County reported Monday a nearly 12 percent drop in coronavirus hospitalizations over the weekend, though 25 additional virus-related deaths were confirmed.

The number of coronavirus patients being treated in county hospitals stood at 120 as of Monday, down 16 from Friday, according to RUHS. The figure includes 31 ICU patients, two fewer than last week.

County health officials do not release updated figures on weekends.

The total number of COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in March 2020 is now 294,063, up 232 from Friday.

On Monday, the COVID-19 death toll stood at 4,273, according to RUHS data.

The county is moving closer to the orange tier of the state's Blueprint for a Safer Economy framework. It is expected the county will meet the threshold Tuesday, but in order to progress it must meet the orange-tier metrics for two weeks. If current trends hold, the county should be eligible to move into the orange tier around mid-April. See what businesses/sectors will open in the orange tier.

Gov. Gavin Newsom has said a new "green tier" will be added soon to the framework. Details on that new, less restrictive tier are expected to be released in coming days.

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