As federal health officials this week recommended that all vaccinated Americans get COVID-19 booster shots, Los Angeles County’s death toll from COVID-19 has moved closer to the grim milestone of 25,000.
County health officials Tuesday had confirmed another 30 fatalities due to the virus, along with more than 2,900 new infections. The 30 new deaths lifted the countywide toll from throughout the pandemic to 24,935. The number of people hospitalized with COVID jumped to 1,754, according to state figures, up from 1,679 on Monday. There were also 397 people being treated in intensive care, down from 402 the previous day.
Meanwhile, as expected, federal health officials this week recommended that all vaccinated Americans get booster shots eight months after they become fully vaccinated. That amounts to a third dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine—and “likely’’ an additional dose for people who received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot.
Those shots could begin the week of Sept. 20, according to a joint statement Wednesday from the Centers for Disease Control and the Health and Human Services.
By Tuesday, the county Department of Public Health logged another 2,907 COVID infections, noting that the number may still be low due to continued delays in reporting from the weekend.
