As of April 6, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s current seven-day national moving average of daily new COVID cases was 25,596, which is sa 4.9% increase over the previous seven-day moving average. The Omicron variants now account for virtually all new cases in the U.S., and a total of 80,111,065 COVID-19 cases and 981,197 COVID-19 deaths have been reported in the U.S.
Nonetheless, CDC reports the U.S. has made “tremendous progress” in the fight against COVID-19 with cases, hospitalizations and deaths declining across the country and with millions at much lower risk of serious sickness from COVID — but it still warns of ongoing community transmission.
CDC reports that vaccination rates among children ages 5 to 11 years remain low, which leaves them more vulnerable to serious disease. While children face a lower risk of contracting severe COVID, they can still become seriously ill, the CDC warns, saying “there is no way to tell in advance which a child will get a mild or severe case.” According to CDC, “COVID-19 vaccines have undergone — and continue to undergo — the “most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history.” CDC urges people to talk with their healthcare provider about COVID vaccination.
CDC continues to rate Riverside County’s “community level” as “Low.” People in all community levels are recommended to stay up to date with their vaccines, and to get tested if they have symptoms.
As of Tuesday, April 12, Riverside County Public Health (RCPH) reported 313 COVID cases in the “Idyllwild-Pine Cove community,” resulting in six deaths and 306 patients recovered, leaving one new active case. Anza has had 389 total cases with seven deaths and 381 recovered, leaving one active case there, also.
As of Friday, April 8, the state of California reported 591,268 total cases in Riverside County with 3.1 new cases per 100,000 residents over a seven-day moving average. That works out to about a 10.7% increase over last week. The state reports a total of 6,429 confirmed COVID deaths in Riverside County, 11 more than last week. The state also reports 42 currently hospitalized COVID patients in our county (nine fewer than last week), with 116 ICU beds currently available, 14 fewer than reported last week.
As of Tuesday, April 12, the Dashboard of the Hemet Unified School District (HUSD) reported no active cases of COVID at Idyllwild School among either students or staff members. At Hemet High, five students and one staff member were reported as active cases. Hamilton School reported one student and no staff members with active COVID.
As of Friday, April 8, RCPH reported that in Riverside County, 61.2% of the population 5 years and older is now “fully vaccinated” (two doses), while 31.7% have had at least one additional booster.
But as of Monday, April 11, California reported 8,513,771 total confirmed COVID cases statewide (19,766 more than reported last week, which is a whopping 89.4% more new cases than were reported last week) with 88,557 total resulting deaths (350 more than reported last week, which is a 38.3% increase in new deaths over what was reported the previous week).
Back on March 18, CDC released a new study showing that, “among adults hospitalized with COVID-19 during the Delta and Omicron waves, those who received two or three doses of the Pfizer BioNTech or Moderna vaccine had 90-95% less risk of dying or needing a ventilator compared with adults who were not vaccinated.”
CDC advises that vaccination, along with other important prevention strategies, continues to be the best defense against severe COVID disease. Everyone ages 5 years and up is recommended to be vaccinated, with boosters for everyone ages 12 and older — specifically the Pfizer-BioNTech booster for those ages 12 to 15.
COVID vaccinations are available in Idyllwild by appointment at Idyllwild Pharmacy (1-951-659-2135). Riverside County is not listing any place on the Hill as a future county vaccination location, but places in Hemet, San Jacinto, Banning, Beaumont, Moreno Valley, Desert Hot Springs and Palm Desert are listed. Visit https://rivcoph.org/COVID-19-Vaccine-with-Registration to schedule vaccinations through RCPH.
Also, CDC suggests visiting vaccines.gov, calling 1-800-232-0233 or texting your ZIP code to 438829 to find a vaccination site near you. Further CDC resources are available at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/COVID-data/COVIDview/.