Spike in California virus cases hitting hospitals, schools
Spike in California virus cases hitting hospitals, schools
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
FILE - Parent Rosa Vargas and her son, 9th grade student Victor Loredo, 14, walk home after getting tested at a Los Angeles Unified School District COVID-19 testing and vaccination site in East Los Angeles, April 15, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now as students return to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of Dec. 2021. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - California Gov. Gavin Newsom, left, receives a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster shot from California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly at Asian Health Services in Oakland, Calif., on Oct. 27, 2021. Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits went out to families before and during winter break but millions more did not. That has raised concerns about school safety now that COVID-19 cases are soaring. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - A rapid COVID-19 test swab is processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
FILE - Rapid COVID-19 tests swabs are processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, talks about testing people for flu along with COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 if they show symptoms at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID on Wednesday, Jan, 5, 2022 at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
FILE - School employee Amanda Anguiano gets tested for COVID-19 on the first day of in-person learning at Maurice Sendak Elementary School in Los Angeles, on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
FILE - Parent Rosa Vargas and her son, 9th grade student Victor Loredo, 14, walk home after getting tested at a Los Angeles Unified School District COVID-19 testing and vaccination site in East Los Angeles, April 15, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now as students return to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of Dec. 2021. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - Parent Rosa Vargas and her son, 9th grade student Victor Loredo, 14, walk home after getting tested at a Los Angeles Unified School District COVID-19 testing and vaccination site in East Los Angeles, April 15, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now as students return to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of Dec. 2021. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - California Gov. Gavin Newsom, left, receives a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster shot from California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly at Asian Health Services in Oakland, Calif., on Oct. 27, 2021. Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits went out to families before and during winter break but millions more did not. That has raised concerns about school safety now that COVID-19 cases are soaring. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - California Gov. Gavin Newsom, left, receives a Moderna COVID-19 vaccine booster shot from California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly at Asian Health Services in Oakland, Calif., on Oct. 27, 2021. Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits went out to families before and during winter break but millions more did not. That has raised concerns about school safety now that COVID-19 cases are soaring. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
FILE - A rapid COVID-19 test swab is processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
FILE - A rapid COVID-19 test swab is processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not — raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
FILE - Rapid COVID-19 tests swabs are processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
FILE - Rapid COVID-19 tests swabs are processed at Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Aug. 24, 2021. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now that the state’s 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. The California Department of Public Health has said it sent about 2 million rapid tests to school districts at the beginning of December. (Brittany Murray/The Orange County Register via AP, File)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for “Flurona.” (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, talks about testing people for flu along with COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 if they show symptoms at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, talks about testing people for flu along with COVID-19 on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022 if they show symptoms at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People are tested for COVID-19 at 911 COVID Testing drive-thru on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID on Wednesday, Jan, 5, 2022 at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
Steve Farzam, chief operating officer of 911 COVID Testing, shows a multiple antigen test for flu and COVID on Wednesday, Jan, 5, 2022 at the site near the Getty Center in Los Angeles, where a teenage boy tested positive for both the flu and COVID-19. (Sarah Reingewirtz/The Orange County Register via AP)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
People line up at a COVID-19 testing center Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2022, in San Fernando, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
FILE - School employee Amanda Anguiano gets tested for COVID-19 on the first day of in-person learning at Maurice Sendak Elementary School in Los Angeles, on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE - School employee Amanda Anguiano gets tested for COVID-19 on the first day of in-person learning at Maurice Sendak Elementary School in Los Angeles, on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom is facing criticism for failing to deliver on his promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all of the state’s students and school staff before classrooms reopened after winter break. Millions of test kits were sent to families before and during winter break but millions more were not, raising concerns about public school safety now amid soaring rates of COVID-19 cases. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California is struggling to staff hospitals and classrooms as an astonishing spike in coronavirus infections sweeps through the state.
The fast-spreading omicron variant of COVID-19 is sidelining exposed or infected health care workers even as hospital beds fill with patients and “some facilities are going to be strapped,” Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said Wednesday.
Some 40% of hospitals are expecting to face critical staff shortages and some are reporting as much as one quarter of their staff out for virus-related reasons, said Kiyomi Burchill of the California Hospital Association.
In Fresno County, more than 300 workers at area hospitals were either isolating because of exposure or recovering, said Dan Lynch, the county’s emergency medical services director.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department is driving patients to hospitals in fire trucks rather than ambulances because 450 firefighters are absent after testing positive, acting Assistant Chief Brian Bennett told the Carson City Council on Tuesday, according the Los Angeles Daily News.
Going forward, the county Fire Department will only be sent on medical calls when absolutely necessary, officials said.
“The rapid spread of omicron has wiped out our workforce,” McCormick Ambulance, a private company that contracts with the county, said in a statement.
California had the lowest per-capita case rate in the U.S. in September but like the rest of the country it’s now experiencing a dramatic rise from the omicron variant. Confirmed virus cases have shot up nearly 500% in the last two weeks and hospitalizations have doubled since Christmas to more than 8,000. State models forecast hospitalizations could top 20,000 by early next month, a level nearly as high as last January, when California experienced its deadliest surge.
At least nine hospitals in Orange County have set up surge tents to increase their capacity if they are swamped by virus cases in addition to a rise in other medical problems, such as strokes, said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, the county’s deputy health director.
People with minor symptoms should start with a virtual visit to a doctor because “our hospitals and our ERs and our urgent cares are full and they really need to focus their efforts on people who are really sick,” she said.
California has extended its indoor mask mandate into mid-February to help combat the infection but Ghaly said there is no discussion of further restrictions, noting the availability of vaccines and COVID-19 treatments that were largely absent a year ago.
The virus is sidelining school personnel even as 6 million K-12 students are returning to classrooms.
Sacramento City Unified School District reported that more than 500 students and staff were quarantined after testing positive for COVID-19.
Gov. Gavin Newsom and state officials, meanwhile, are facing criticism for failing to deliver on a promise to provide rapid, at-home tests to all California students and school staff before classrooms reopened after the winter break.
Millions of test kits were sent to families but millions more were not, and there have been long lines this week at Los Angeles County testing sites.
California schools chief Tony Thurmond on Wednesday called the delay “disappointing.”
Ghaly said logistical problems and bad weather in Southern California had contributed to the problem but said some 6.2 million tests had been delivered to county offices of education, with more tests going out this week.
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Gecker reported from San Francisco. Janie Har in San Francisco contributed to this report.