Local COVID-19 infection, hospitalization rates slow but still high, health officials say

Tom Kisken
Ventura County Star

COVID-19 infection rates and hospitalizations are slowing in Ventura County, public health officials said Tuesday.

A delta variant-driven surge that peaked at 28.5 infections a day per 100,000 people in August has fallen to an average of 16.3 cases a day, Ventura County Public Health Director Rigoberto Vargas told the county Board of Supervisors.

Waves of COVID-19 hospital admissions that were stretching already thin resources have also diminished, Vargas said. On Tuesday, 71 COVID-19 patients were being treated in hospitals across the county, compared with 103 people one week ago.

Vargas said the case rate and hospitalizations still reflect widespread transmission but are headed in the right direction.

"We’re making good downward progress but we have not flattened the curve,” he said.

The goal is to push metrics down to the nearly flat-line levels of June and early July when cases and hospitalizations were few, Vargas said.

More:Ventura County's mask mandate extended into October as cases surge

Dr. Robert Levin, the county's health officer, told supervisors exposure risks remain too high for the board to resume in-person meetings. He recommended "100%" of board meetings be held remotely on an indefinite basis. 

Supervisor Kelly Long asked for clarification, noting some organizations have resumed in-person meetings. Levin said the likelihood of a crowded county meeting room and the highly contagious delta variant pose a potentially dangerous combination.

The health officer also addressed COVID-19 booster shots, already being administered to people with compromised immunities. He said he didn't know exactly when the shots would be available for other groups but speculated that federal approval for people 65 and older could come within days.

It's possible the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may also recommend booster shots for teachers and health-care workers, Levin said. The extra shots may come six months after the initial doses.

Many of the boosters may be limited initially to people who received the Pfizer vaccines. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson are expected to submit their booster data to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration within several weeks, Levin said.

Pharmacies, medical clinics and doctor's offices will likely distribute most of the boosters.

More than 80% of adults in the county have now received at least one dose of vaccine. A coalition of community groups helps the county promote inoculations at the grassroots level, with door-to-door visits to answer questions and mobile vaccination stations.

"We're going to keep it going because it really seems to be working," County Executive Officer Mike Powers said. 

The county is on track to meet the state's Sept. 30 deadline for having health-care works inoculated with at least one shot of vaccine to continue working, said Barry Zimmerman, director of the county Health Care Agency. At least 90% of the nearly 3,400 employees at county-run hospitals and clinics have been vaccinated or have qualified for exemptions, he said. The county is planning for emergency staffing to offset any shortfalls that emerge.

More:Parental anxiety swells as COVID-19 infections rise among local children

"Our goal is to keep normal operations and not have to compromise any of our activities," he said.

Supervisors praised a four-round series of business grants in which more than $70 million has been authorized for thousands of businesses and nonprofits financially strapped because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications for the latest round of grants have been closed and are being reviewed.

"It just shows our community, our county takes care of each other," Long said. 

Tom Kisken covers health care and other news for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tom.kisken@vcstar.com or 805-437-0255.

SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM: To see more stories like this, subscribe here.