Over 500 Orange County Residents Contract Coronavirus Thursday

ORANGE COUNTY, CA — Orange County reports 522 new cases of COVID- 19 Thursday, along with a slight increase in hospitalizations. Though the coronavirus positivity rate is more alarming as it reflects more people being infected rather than an increase in testing according to Andrew Noymer, epidemiologist and UC Irvine professor of population health and disease prevention.

The current COVID vaccines all provide a high degree of protection against infections and — while they will not prevent all infections, experts say, they usually prevent serious illness and death.

"Delta is exploding everywhere," Noymer said to medial. "It's become apparent Delta has become a big game-changer."

As of last Thursday, the county reported that 1,876,853 residents were fully vaccinated. The number of residents who have received Pfizer or Moderna and are fully vaccinated is 1,754,729. The number of those who received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine and are fully vaccinated is 122,124.

The county reported 214,245 who have received at least one dose of the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

The number of coronavirus patients in county hospitals was 215, up from 212 on Tuesday, the Orange County Health Care Agency said Wednesday. There were 56 COVID-19 patients in intensive care, up from 48 the previous day.

The county had 25.4% of its ICU beds available, down from 27% on Tuesday.

No additional coronavirus deaths were reported Wednesday. The latest figures brought the county's cumulative total to 263,056 cases and 5,140 fatalities since the pandemic began.

On Tuesday, the county's latest weekly COVID-19 averages showed a sharp increase in cases, largely due to the Delta variant, which has been characterized as a "game-changer" by one local expert.

OC's average daily case rate per 100,000 residents increased from 4.9 to 8 in a one-week period, and the test positivity rate jumped from 3.3 to 4.9%.

The county's Health Equity Quartile rate, which measures the disadvantaged communities hardest hit by the pandemic, increased from 3.4% to 4.4%.

The death toll for July is 2; 15 for June; 22 for May; 43 for April; 199 for March; 612 for February; 1,563 for January — the deadliest month of the pandemic — and 967 for December, the next deadliest.

Noymer expects fewer deaths during this surge because of high vaccination rates among seniors.

The Delta variant is a great deal more contagious and produces higher viral loads, but it is unclear how much more deadly it could be, Noymer said.

"It's not clear to me that Delta is more deadly, but it is clear to me it's more spreadable," Noymer said.

The rising level of breakthrough infections is concerning, Noymer said. The vaccines are effective at keeping most recipients from hospitalization or serious illness, experts say. Still, Noymer pointed out he is acquainted with two fully vaccinated people who were hospitalized for a COVID-19 infection.

"It's not a crisis, but the direction of travel is backward and that is the issue," Noymer said.

The most dominant variants in Orange County in recent weeks have been the Delta, Alpha and Gamma variants, according to the OCHCA. Delta and Alpha are considered much more highly contagious, with Delta now considered the most dominant strain statewide.

City News Service, Patch Editor Ashley Ludwig contributed to this report.