The aftermath of the Thanksgiving holiday has skyrocketed, and the effects of Christmas and New Year’s celebrations are still being felt. As of Saturday, U.S. More than 20.4 million people have been infected with the virus and at least 350,186 have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. And health experts worry about what will happen to those numbers if the infection continues to spread.
Chief Medical Officer of Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center, Dr. “This is about the complete collapse of the health care system if we have another spike,” said Brad Spielberg. “And we, at the hospital hospital, can’t stop it. We can only respond to it. The public has the power to stop the spread of this virus by following public health guidelines.”
In California, emergency room officials said hospitals were treating an unprecedented number of coronavirus patients.
U.S. Army Corps Engineers engineers and design specialists have been deployed in the Los Angeles area to “evaluate and upgrade oxygen delivery systems where necessary” in about half a dozen hospitals.
Colonel Julie Balten, commander of the Los Angeles District of Engineers, said a field hospital converted administrative offices and break rooms into treatment areas for their coronavirus patients.
4 million were vaccinated
Although the distribution of coronavirus vaccines is currently limited to health care workers and long-term care patients, officials hope that vaccinations will eventually lead to cases and hospitalizations.
“We’ve kept a short interval between administered doses, so it’s coming a few days after delivery. I don’t see it as a major system failure,” he said. “We don’t see the vaccine going into the arms quickly. But the infrastructure set we’ve put in place I think it works.”
The UK adopted the strategy of giving the first dose to as many people as possible as soon as possible, saying it protects a small amount.
“We make decisions based on the data. We have no information on whether to give a single dose and wait longer than usual for a second dose.”
A difficult start to the new year
As the American bell rang in the New Year, nearly 11,000 families mourned the loss of a loved one in Covid-19.
More than 4,300 new cases were reported in Arkansas on Friday.
Health officials in Texas have recorded a record-high Covid-19 hospitalization in the state for the fifth day in a row, with more than 12,400 patients.
And Georgia on Friday announced a new record high of 8,769 new Covid-19 cases in the state.
Governav. Brian Kemp said the Orgia World Congress Center Convention Center in Atlanta has been turned into an overflow hospital.
New York added about 16,500 new cases on Friday, days after its highest one-day case count.
“As we begin 2021, I urge all New Yorkers to pay attention to their good angels and continue their businesses to prevent the spread of this virus – wash your hands, keep social distance, and wear a mask,” Gov. Said Andrew Cuomo. Statement.
CNN’s Chuck Johnston, Virginia Langmade, Paul Workman, Holly Yan and Christina Maxoris contributed to the report.
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