Testing Goes Up As COVID-19 Hospitalizations Climb In RivCo

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — As the record-breaking hospitalization rate of coronavirus patients climbed higher Tuesday in Riverside County — hitting the 600 mark — state figures show the county is testing more people.

The addition of 15 new hospital patients since Monday brought the record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations countywide to 600, up from Monday's record 585, according to the Riverside University Health System. That number includes 127 patients being treated in intensive care units — a slight improvement from the 129 people in the ICU a day ago.

Before this week, the previous record high of 550 hospitalizations was set in July.

The total number of infections recorded countywide since the public health documentation period began in early March is 84,824, up by 412 infections since Monday, according to RUHS.

Officials said the number of deaths stemming from complications related to COVID-19 now stands at 1,443, up by one since Monday.

As of Tuesday, state data showed the county's COVID-19 case rate was 21.2 infections per 100,000 residents, with a positivity rate of 7.7 percent. The rates have improved slightly, as has the county's testing level, which now stands at 413.1 tests conducted per 100,000 residents, according to the state's figures. (Find a test site near you.)

In a pre-Thanksgiving briefing last week, Riverside County public health officials focused on the surge in infections. RUHS's Dr. Geoffrey Leung said hospitals throughout the region "are starting to feel the strain" but stand prepared for an influx of patients.

"I think this (surge) will be a little different," said Leung, referring to the amount of preparation that occurred over the summer to ensure facilities have the resources on hand to address greater patient counts.

That sentiment has been echoed by county Emergency Management Department Director Bruce Barton, who recently assured the Board of Supervisors that facilities have access to sufficient personal protective equipment and have made arrangements for excess capacity if and when it's required.

Leung said residents who have any type of critical medical need should not delay care, because facilities are following protocols to separate COVID-19 patients from other patients.

The overall licensed hospital bed capacity in Riverside County is 3,560 with 385 licensed ICU beds, according to the county's "Readiness and Reopening Framework" document.

According to the document, the county can potentially add an additional 2,464 beds and an additional 716 ICU beds.

On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom reported that 51 of California's 58 counties are now in the "purple tier," the most restrictive under the state's Blueprint for a Safer Economy regulatory framework. Some of these counties may see additional restrictions as part of a "deep purple" stay-at-home order, the governor said.

The stay-at-home order could be enacted in counties that are experiencing particularly concerning trends when it comes to hospitalizations and intensive care unit capacity, Newsom said. It will be more akin to the stay-at-home order issued at the onset of the pandemic with modifications.

"If these trends continue, we're going to have to take much more dramatic — arguably drastic — action," Newsom said.

—City News Service, Patch Editor Toni McAllister