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  • Omicron is Proving to be Far Less Serious than Delta: Out of 253,085 Cases in One Week in LA County, Only 151 Deaths

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 14, 2022

    January 11, 2022 - Data from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health shows increasingly good news regarding the Omicron variant, which is responsible for 85% or more of new Covid cases in the region. Out of a 7-day total of 253,085 cases - an unprecedentedly high number - there are only 3,400 people in the hospital who have Covid and there were only 151 deaths. The ratio of hospitalizations and deaths to the current number of cases is better for the week ending January 10 than it was...

  • Myth of Housing Supply Crisis Disintegrated by SM Audit Subcommittee Commissioner Marc Verville at Northeast Neighbors Meeting

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer staff|Jan 14, 2022
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    January 4, 2022 - Last night Santa Monica Audit Subcommittee Commissioner and Santa Monica native Marc Verville exploded the myth of a housing supply crisis in the state or the city. The crisis, Verville explained, is in the surge in real estate value. With a series of deeply researched graphs, Verville explained to the nearly 60 participants in the virtual meeting how the supply of housing in California has easily kept up with population growth. In Santa Monica, the housing supply has actually...

  • Less Than Half of Patients Hospitalized "With Covid" are Actually There for Covid-Associated Illness, Says County Health Department

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 13, 2022

    January 7, 2022 - Dr. Ferrer, Los Angeles County Director of Public Health, announced yesterday that the number of patients hospitalized with Covid that officials have been publicizing does not actually constitute individuals hospitalized because of their infection with Covid-19. The percent of patients in the hospital with the direct cause of Covid-19 was 75% at the beginning of November. By the end of December, only 45% of the patients in the hospital with Covid were there as a direct result...

  • As Omicron Reaches 95% of Cases, the Percent of the Vaccinated Population Catching Covid Increased 36% Last Week, According to Los Angeles County Health Department Data

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 13, 2022

    January 14, 2022 - While the rate of the vaccinated contracting Covid-19 remained somewhat below the rate of the unvaccinated contracting the disease, 36% more of the vaccinated caught Covid last week compared to the previous week. On Thursday, the county hit a new record, with 45,584 new Covid cases. The percent of the vaccinated population who’d contracted Covid was 1% on September 30. That percent has steadily been increasing. As of January 8, 4.6% of the vaccinated population had caught Covi...

  • Higher Grade Masks for Employees and Reduced Size of Mega Events Ordered by LA County Health Department

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 12, 2022

    January 7, 2022 - New Health Officer Orders have been issued by the LA County Department of Public Health. They require employers to upgrade the efficacy of masks provided to employees and restrict the size of mega events, both indoors and outdoors: Masks Employers required to provide upgraded masks (e.g. well-fitting medical grade masks, surgical masks, or N95/KN95 respirators by January 17, 2022 Mega event attendance thresholds lowered to 500 attendees (indoor) and 5,000 (outdoor) Mega events,...

  • County's Free At-Home PCR Test Program Halted

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 10, 2022

    January 6, 2022 - Last week, Dr. Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Director of Public Health, announced a program where residents could order free PCR tests to administer at home and send to the lab for results. Today, during her weekly press conference, she announced that program is paused. "They were running into challenges with the vendor," Ferrer explained. They were having trouble getting deliveries to homes in time. Members of the press at the virtual conference said they knew of people who'd been...

  • Omicron Now Behind 85% of Covid-19 Cases in LA County, and That Seems to Be Good News

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 10, 2022

    January 7, 2022 - During her weekly press conference yesterday, Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Director of Public Health, appeared optimistic about the apparently lower hospitalization and death rate during the latest surge of Covid-19. In just one week, Omicron went from 54% of sequenced samples to 85%. The number of Delta variant cases in the population is lower than at any time since that variant crowded out the previous version of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, sometime during last summer. "Unlike the last...

  • Los Angeles County Quarantine and Isolation Rules for a Positive Test or Close Contact with Covid-19

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 7, 2022
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    January 7, 2022 - The Los Angeles County Health Department has issued a detailed list of instructions for quarantining or isolating due to a positive Covid-19 test or an exposure to Covid-19. The rules have changed to make a distinction between the fully vaccinated and those who have also received booster shots. If you yourself tested positive for Covid-19, you must isolate. This means: Stay home a minimum of 5 days Can end isolation after day 5 if asymptomatic and test negative If test positive...

  • New Covid Cases Continue to Remain High but Hospitalizations and Deaths Are Proportionately Lower than a Month Ago

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 6, 2022

    1/5/22 - On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Department of Public Health announced 21,790 new Covid cases and 24 new deaths. At least 1,792 people are currently hospitalized with the stated cause being Covid-19. The daily case numbers have been hovering around 20,000 since spiking up around December 29. Relatively speaking, hospitalizations and deaths are much lower now, however, than a month ago. With a 7-day total of 146,591 new Covid cases, only 1,792 individuals are hospitalized. This is 1.2% of the...

  • Free At-Home PCR Tests Available to County Residents Who Have Covid Symptoms or Been a Close Contact

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 4, 2022

    December 31, 2021 - Free at-home PCR Covid tests are available from the County of Los Angeles's Department of Public Health website. "If you're sick you shouldn't be leaving your house," Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health, said at a virtual press conference on Thursday. Instead, you can go the county health department's website and order a free Covid test to be sent to your home. It will arrive via express mail in two business days. A free prepaid overnight Fedex shippi...

  • 66.4% of New Covid Infections Are Among the Vaccinated in Los Angeles County

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Jan 4, 2022
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    December 30, 2021 - New numbers released by the Los Angeles County Health Department show that vaccinations are providing ever decreasing protection from infection by Covid-19. Of the new cases identified since November 27, 66.4% were in fully vaccinated individuals. The percent of the county population fully vaccinated is 68.5%. Therefore, vaccines appear to give only marginal protection from infection compared to no vaccine. Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health, was una...

  • Urgent: Local Engineering Student with Mental Health Problems is Missing

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 3, 2022

    Dane Elkins's mother and friends have been searching for him since he abandoned his car around 8:20 pm near the 5 Freeway and Templin Highway in Castaic on December 20. Deborah Elkins, Dane's mother, says her son suffers from mental health issues and she believes he is going through a paranoid and suicidal episode. A student at UC Santa Cruz, Dane is 20 years old, 5 feet 11 inches tall, 170 pounds with brown hair and green eyes. He was possibly spotted in Reseda at a gas station on Christmas,...

  • LA County Reaches 20,198 New Daily Cases; New requirements for quarantine discriminate based on booster status

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 2, 2022

    December 30, 2021 - Dr. Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health was correct in last week's prediction that the county would reach 20,000 new cases per day by the end of the year. In a press conference this afternoon, Dr. Ferrer added that there were 24 deaths today and 1,251 people are in the hospital. So far, deaths have remained steady, but Ferrer warned that deaths often lag behind cases by several weeks. Dr. Ferrer said she expected the Omicron variant to eventually dominate...

  • 27,091 New Covid Cases Today in Los Angeles County But Only 12 Deaths

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Jan 1, 2022

    December 31, 2021 - The last day of the year brought yet another record-breaking number of daily new cases of Covid-19 in Los Angeles County. Health officials announced 27,091 new positive cases of Covid-19, roughly 7,000 more than yesterday's daily number of new cases. 12 deaths were reported and 1,365 people are in the hospital with Covid. Deaths from Covid typically lag behind the date of the initial infection by four weeks or more, according to Director of Public Health Dr. Barbara Ferrer....

  • Nearly 10,000 New Covid-19 Cases in One Day But Hospitalizations and Deaths Remain Stable in Los Angeles County

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 29, 2021

    December 24, 2021 - With every day setting a new record in the rate of new cases of Covid-19 in Los Angeles County, health officials today announced 9,988 new positive cases. 801 individuals are in the hospital. They did not say how many of the new cases today have been identified as the Omicron variant, but two days ago, county health officials claimed 162 Omicron cases out of a total of 6,509. The number of new Covid cases in the county had been holding fairly steady in the 3,000-plus range...

  • Over 16,000 New Covid Cases Have So Far Not Resulted in An Increase in the Daily Rate of Death

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 25, 2021

    December 29, 2021 - The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced a sharp increase in Covid cases today, with 16,510 new positive cases identified. Officials pointed out this is nearly double the number of new daily cases just a week ago. A month ago, the number of new daily cases was 843. So far the number of daily deaths is remaining low, at about the same rate as it was a month ago. Today 25 Covid deaths were reported in the county, 21 of them involving underlying conditions...

  • Is it Omicron or is it Delta? The Headlong Rate of Increase in LA County Cases Over the Weekend Has (Temporarily?) Stopped Dead

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Dec 25, 2021

    UPDATE: On Wednesday afternoon, LA county health officials announced that, in the week ending December 18, of sequenced samples, 54% were Omicron. December 28, 2021 - Is Omicron now the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Los Angeles County? Officials aren't saying so, and it is doubtful if they even know. On December 23, the California Department of Public Health claimed that 50% to 70% of new cases were Omicron in at least three California health systems. However, as reported by the...

  • 38 Cases of Omicron Variant Now in Los Angeles County, None Known to Require Hospitalization

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 20, 2021

    14 - Today the the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced an additional 8 cases of Omicron had been identified, bringing the total number of Omicron cases in the region to 38. The first Omicron case was reported in LA County on December 2. By December 9, county health officials could not trace the origin of the infection and labeled the fourth Omicron case a "possible result of local transmission." Of the 8 cases reported today, 5 individuals were fully vaccinated with on...

  • Felony Vandalism on Third Street Promenade

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 18, 2021

    December 17, 2021 - Shortly after midnight on Wednesday morning, Santa Monica Police received a call about a group of men wreaking destruction on the Third Street Promenade. Upon arrival of officers near 3rd and Arizona, they found a group of males uprooting trees, breaking holiday decorations, and damaging fencing around a business. Officers detained 5 men, all from Los Angeles. The following individual were arrested and booked for Felony Vandalism: · Shane Thomas Barry 21-year-old · Zachary L...

  • Council Approves New Uses for Shore Hotel on Ocean Avenue

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff Writer|Dec 15, 2021

    7: The Santa Monica City Council, in a 4-3 vote, approved new uses sought by the Shore Hotel. The hotel, located across from the Santa Monica Pier, wanted to open an 80-seat restaurant, a massage service for guests, and a 14-room "micro-hotel." The approval was opposed by the Unite HERE Local 11 union and also by residents who recalled the Shore Hotel's violation of California Coastal Commission rules in its construction. The owners had originally applied to the CCC to build a moderately...

  • With More Cases Now Among the Vaccinated Than Unvaxxed in LA County, Vaccine Mandates Create More Harm Than Good

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Dec 15, 2021
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    December 7, 2021 - In response to a direct media request, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health released information about the number of Covid-19 cases among vaccinated residents that throw into doubt the rationale for vaccine mandates. Over the span between November 15 and November 27, there were more Covid cases among the vaccinated than the unvaccinated. 64.9% of cases were in vaccinated individuals. The November 27 statistics from LACDPH show: Total population of LA County:...

  • It's Here, Folks: Fourth Omicron Case in LA County Deemed from Community Transmission

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 13, 2021

    December 9, 2021 - The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced a fourth case of Covid-19 via the Omicron variant today. "This latest case is a possible result of local transmission," according to the press release. That means they are unable to trace the infection of another location, such as travel from West Africa or the East Coast, as they have done with the previous three infections. The present individual with the Omicron variety of Covid has mild symptoms. They are not...

  • Samo Student Detained by Police and then Released to Parents' Custody after Threatening Post on Snapchat

    Alyssa Erdley, Observer Staff|Dec 12, 2021

    December 6, 2021 - On Monday morning, the Santa Monica Police Department investigated two separate threat incidents, one at Saint Monica's High School on the north side of the city and the other at Santa Monica High School (Samo), just south of the 10 Freeway. SMPD says the two incidents were unrelated. In investigating the threat related to Saint Monica's, police determined the threatening message both originated at and was aimed toward Elk Grove High School, which is located in Northern...

  • Third Omicron Case Starts to Peel the Mask off Health Officials' Belief that Vaccines Prevent Transmission

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Dec 10, 2021
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    December 7, 2021 - The third case of Omicron infection has been detected in Los Angeles County, according to health officials. We predict they will stop telling us about each new case detected by the beginning of next week because there will be too many of them. This particular case is in a person who recently traveled in West Africa. The individual is fully vaccinated, as were the other two Omicron cases in the county. Mild symptoms are reported. Of the other two cases, one was also said to...

  • Second Omicron Case Found in LA County, Also in Fully Vaccinated Individual

    Alyssa Erdley, News with Attitude|Dec 10, 2021

    December 6, 2021 - The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced today they have discovered a second individual in the area who is infected with the new Omicron variant (B.1.1.529). The infected individual is a college student returning from holiday travel to the East Coast. This person is fully vaccinated and experiencing mild symptoms. County officials have concluded, "based on travel history," that it is "likely" the infection was acquired outside of Los Angeles County. Four da...

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