To be tested or not for covid-19?
The medical keys 2:05
(CNN) -
Los Angeles County reported its highest number of new COVID-19 cases in a week since the pandemic began Saturday, marking another milestone as the omicron variant fuels a surge in the United States. .
The county had more than 200,000 confirmed cases in the previous seven days, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a news release.
Hospitalizations doubled during the week to 3,200 and there were 135 COVID-related deaths, the department said.
"Our hearts go out to those families who are experiencing the pain of losing their loved ones to Covid-19," Barbara Ferrer, director of public health, said in Saturday's statement.
"As the increase continues, we ask residents and businesses to continue to follow public health safety measures that we know reduce the spread and keep people safe."
With the number of infections rising, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced Saturday a proposed $ 2.7 billion Covid-19 Emergency Response Package designed to bolster testing and vaccination efforts, support frontline workers. and combat misinformation, his office said in a press release.
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Newsom also signed an executive order Saturday "establishing consumer protections against price increases on home test kits," according to his office.
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"To help improve access to these tests at a fair price, the order generally prohibits sellers from increasing the prices of COVID-19 home test kits by more than 10 percent," the statement read from press.
"The order also provides additional tools for the California Department of Justice and the Attorney General's Office, district attorneys and other local law enforcement agencies to take action against price gougers."
Rising infections are hitting Los Angeles children hard, too.
At Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), the positivity rate for children tested for covid-19 increased from 17.5% in December to 45% year-to-date in January, according to CHLA Medical Director Dr. Michael Smit.
The CHLA currently has 41 inpatients who have tested positive for COVID-19, and about a quarter of children admitted to facilities with COVID-19 require admission to the pediatric ICU, and some require intubation, Smit told CNN this Saturday. .
Pediatrician gives advice on the increase in hospitalization of children due to covid-19 2:15
The increase in cases comes just as Los Angeles students prepare to return to face-to-face classes on Tuesday.
The Los Angeles Unified School District, the second-largest school district in the country, requires all students and employees to test negative for COVID-19 before returning to the classroom.
The benchmark test requirement was implemented at the beginning of the school year in August, and the district announced a week ago that both the benchmark test and the weekly tests required for all employees and students would continue through January, given the current increase in the omicron variant.
Shannon Haber, director of communications for LAUSD, told CNN Saturday that similar protocols in the fall, along with vaccination requirements, universal mask and sanitation practices "at the level of the Ghostbusters," have made it possible for each of their More than 1,000 schools will stay open for face-to-face learning this academic year.
Haber said that 100% of LAUSD employees are fully vaccinated and students 12 and older must be fully vaccinated at the beginning of the next school year, and that 90% thus far meet that requirement.
Disputes over face-to-face learning
Nationally, 39 states report a 50% or more increase in cases over the past week compared to the prior week, and as of Saturday, the seven-day average of new cases per day in the United States was 701,199, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
For the week ending Dec. 30, children accounted for 17.7% of new cases reported in the United States, the American Academy of Pediatrics said, noting a record 325.00 new cases among children, an increase. 64% compared to the previous week.
In response to the rise in pediatric infections, disputes over whether in-person learning is ideal during the omicron surge and how students can safely attend school are developing in several school districts this week.
The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) system has canceled classes since Wednesday due to a dispute between city officials and the teachers union over return to the classroom.
The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) had voted to teach remotely due to the rise in covid-19, but the school district canceled classes, saying it wanted in-person learning.
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CTU on Saturday presented a new proposal to Mayor Lori Lightfoot that the union said would provide clarity on returning to the classroom, create greater security and testing protocols and restart the educational process for students.
CPS rejected the proposal, saying it hoped "to continue negotiations to reach an agreement."
The school district agreed to CTU's request to provide KN95 masks for all staff and students for the remainder of the school year and said they will continue to provide weekly COVID-19 testing to all students and staff.
In Georgia, public school teachers who test positive for COVID-19 no longer have to isolate themselves before returning to school, and contact tracing in schools is no longer necessary, according to a letter to school leaders. Posted Thursday by Governor Brian Kemp and Public Health Commissioner Kathleen Toomey.
The Georgia Department of Public Health released an updated administrative order on Wednesday allowing teachers and school personnel, regardless of vaccination status, to return to work after exposure to COVID-19 or a positive test for COVID-19 if they remain asymptomatic and wear a mask while at work.
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Lisa Morgan, president of the Georgia Educators Association, told CNN Saturday that she believed the changes were "absolutely wrong at the worst time."
"We know that there is an increase in cases in our children, that there is an increase in hospitalizations of our children and this action shows a lack of consideration for the health and safety of educators, students and our families," Morgan said.
He said educators wanted to be in classrooms with their students, but that must be achieved by keeping people healthy.
Removing the contact tracing requirement was frustrating, he said.
"Now, an educator will not know if there is a positive case in their classroom. Parents will not know if there is a positive case in their child's classroom. Therefore, educators and parents will not be able to make informed decisions. to ensure health and safety, "Morgan said.
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The teacher shortage in Boston prompted Superintendent Brenda Cassellius to step in to teach a fourth grade class last week. She told CNN on Saturday that the stress of the past two years had been difficult for adults and children.
"In particular, it has been a challenge for our high school students and our high school students who have had significant isolation and lack of regulation due to mental health issues," he said. In the future, Cassellius said, more testing capacity is needed in her district.
"We need our teachers to be included in those tests because at this time vaccinated students and teachers are not included in those tests. We need some changes in policy, particularly when we are in times of increase," he said.
Hospitals struggling with the numbers
Staff shortages are increasing as front-line health care workers, who are at increased risk of exposure, are infected and must self-quarantine at a time when the spread of the omicron variant is bringing more people to the hospitals.
More than 138,000 covid-19 patients were in hospitals in the United States as of this Saturday, according to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
That's not far from the all-time high (around 142,200 in mid-January 2021) and an increase of around 45,000 in early November.
About 1 in 4 hospitals in the United States - (24%) - report a "critical shortage of staff," the largest share of the covid-19 pandemic, according to HHS data Saturday.
Of the roughly 5,000 hospitals that reported this data to HHS, nearly 1,200 said they are currently experiencing critical staffing shortages, and more than 100 more hospitals said they anticipate a shortage over the next week.
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To safeguard hospital capacity, some states have reduced elective surgeries at certain facilities.
In New York, 40 hospitals, primarily in the Mohawk Valley, Finger Lakes, and central regions, have been told to halt elective nonessential operations for at least two weeks due to low patient bed capacity, said Saturday. state health department.
In Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly signed a state of disaster emergency this week due to the challenges of COVID-19.
The medical director of the University of Kansas Health System, Steven Stites, told CNN this Saturday that they were very close to implementing the standards of care in case of crisis.
"At some point it says that we are too overwhelmed to do our normal daily work. We can't even meet all the demands of our patients, and at that point we have to flip a switch that says we have to sort through the people we can help. more and that means we have to let some people die that we could have helped but weren't sure of: they were too far away or they had too many injuries, or maybe we can't get to that trauma that just came. "
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That change, Stites said, could be changed if they have too many covid patients or if they lose too much staff to covid-19.
Stites said two waves were hitting Kansas simultaneously, with the delta accelerating after Thanksgiving, to be greeted by omicron.
"Right now, most of our hospitalizations reflect delta - a lot of patients - at the same time that our staff is being hit by omicron. ... It is for us, almost a double pandemic. And that's really the challenge. healthy people, so we can keep our patients healthy, "he said.
Stites said the vast majority of those hospitalized are not vaccinated.
"80% to 90% of the patients who are admitted to our hospital are not vaccinated. Ninety-five percent of our patients who are in the intensive care unit are not vaccinated. And 99% of the people who are in an artificial respirator or who die are not vaccinated ... you can say what you want, people can invent the news they want, the reality is, what is the reality. The unvaccinated patients, the unvaccinated people, are the people who they are at higher risk. "
About 62.5% of the total US population is fully vaccinated according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 36% of them have received a booster shot, data shows.
CNN's Travis Caldwell, Keith Allen, Raja Razek, Natasha Chen and Anna-Maja Rappard contributed to this report.
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