RivCo Sees First Drop In COVID Hospitalizations Since Surge Began

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — For the first time in weeks, the number of COVID-positive patients in Riverside County hospitals fell, but it's unclear whether the one-day drop signals a peak in the virus spread.

The Riverside University Health System said COVID hospitalizations countywide were at 1,076 on Thursday, down 33 from Wednesday's numbers. The total includes 154 ICU patients, a drop of six since Wednesday.

In Orange County, the number of hospitalized COVID-19-positive patients dropped by nearly 50 on Thursday, marking the county's first significant decrease in hospitalizations amid the omicron variant-fueled surge. The number of hospitalized OC patients fell from 1,232 Wednesday to 1,183 on Thursday, while the number of patients in intensive care declined from 207 to 199.

In Los Angeles County, the virus has taxed the health care system in recent weeks, but Thursday saw just 15 new COVID patients, bringing the county's COVID hospitalizations to 4,814.

The number of COVID-positive patients in San Diego County hospitals increased by 14 people to 1,303 on Thursday, according to the latest state data. While still increasing, the hospitalizations spike appears to be becoming less steep, experts in San Diego County said.

Christopher Longhurst, UC San Diego Health's chief medical officer, posted on Twitter on Monday that there are "multiple signs we are sliding down the omicron slope," with case rates and hospitalizations on the decline compared to a week ago.

On Sunday, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy told CNN that areas that were among the first to get hit hard by the omicron variant are starting to see their COVID numbers level off.

"There are parts of the country — New York, in particular, and other parts of the Northeast — where we are starting to see a plateau, and in some cases, an early decline in cases," Murthy said.

Los Angeles was among the areas hit hard early on by omicron, and neighboring counties like Riverside and Orange quickly followed suit.

"The challenge is that the entire country is not moving at the same pace," Murthy said. "The omicron wave started later in other parts of the country, so we shouldn't expect a national peak in the next coming days. The next few weeks will be tough."

While Riverside County COVID hospitalizations dropped for the first time amid the omicron surge, the virus continues to strain the local health care system. The large COVID patient load is on top of a high number of people seeking medical help for other issues, and local hospitals are scrambling to cover for health care workers who have called out sick amid the contagious omicron variant.

Health care workers who are on duty “are very tired and working hard — harder than normal,” Dr. Michael Neri Jr., Riverside County area medical director for Kaiser Permanente, told The Press-Enterprise.

RUHS officials said the total number of COVID cases recorded in Riverside County since the pandemic began in March 2020 now stands at 432,101, an increase of 1,607 new cases since Wednesday.

The reported COVID death toll stood at 5,706 on Thursday, an increase of 19 since Wednesday. The fatalities are trailing indicators because of delays processing death certificates and can go back weeks, according to health officials.