COVID-19 cases climb in Orange County, but hospitalizations low

While state data indicate that COVID-19 testing in Orange County has declined, the positivity rates for those tests have made a steady upward trajectory since June — reflecting concerns made public in early August by the Orange County Health Care Agency.

County health officer Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong encouraged residents to take greater measures to protect those at risk: taking tests if they come into close contact with anyone infected with the virus, staying home if they are sick, wearing a mask in crowded spaces, continuing good hand and cough hygiene and staying up to date with vaccinations.

“Now is the time for everyone to reassess and implement mitigation strategies — especially for those who are or who work or live with at-risk individuals. Improving indoor ventilation and the use of face masks can offer protection and reduce transmission,” Chinsio-Kwong said, as residents head into the start of the Labor Day weekend.

As of Thursday, the Orange County Health Care Agency reported 60 individuals in hospitals being treated for COVID-19, but Chinsio-Kwong said it would not be appropriate to characterize that as a spike in cases. Hospitalizations remain relatively low, even though admission of patients continues to grow.

About 1,053 positive cases were reported this week to the county of the 6,696 tests reported. Three deaths related to COVID-19 were also recorded.

Couples walk the paths and take in the view from Inspiration Point in Corona Del Mar on Thursday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Numbers here mirror those in the rest of the state of California.

“The immunity is stronger today than at any other point in the outbreak,” Dr. Mandy Cohen, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in a video briefing last week. “That means we’re moving toward COVID-19 being a more manageable illness with less severe illness.”

But those unvaccinated continue to face the greatest threat of severe illness, which grows riskier in older age groups and in those who have not yet experienced an infection. Underlying health conditions also play a major factor, and the risk of developing long COVID remains persistent.

Subvariants of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus lead the infections in Orange County, and health officials are now on the lookout for another subvariant, BA.2.86, which scientists are calling Pirola. Few cases have been identified in the U.S. so far, but there are concerns it may be more capable of causing infection in those who have already had COVID-19.