First Modern vaccines distributed to SoCal, as California approaches 2M cases of COVID-19

LONG BEACH, California (KABC) – California is fast approaching a disturbing milestone, probably within days of reporting 2 million cases of coronavirus.

With the increase in cases there is an increase in hospitalizations and many medical facilities in Southern California report that they are at full capacity. Los Angeles County, for the first time, reports more than 6,000 people hospitalized for COVID-19.

Still, hope appears on the horizon as the region has begun receiving the Modern vaccine, in addition to the Pfizer vaccine that began to be distributed earlier this month.

Hospitalizations have increased so drastically that health care providers are once again petitioning Californians to take precautions against the virus, especially with the upcoming holidays.

“Today we exceed 100% of our usual volume of patients,” said Greg Adams, president and CEO of Kaiser Permanente. “And of that volume, 52% of our hospitalized patients are patients diagnosed with COVID.”

Adams added that 16 of Kaiser’s 36 hospitals have more than 100% occupancy in their intensive care units.

Other health workers talk about the narrowness of the facilities, mainly because of the Thanksgiving meetings that helped spread the virus. They ask the public not to “share the air.”

“Absolutely nothing could have prepared us for what we’ve experienced over the past few months,” said Cecilia Fleming, a nurse in charge of Kaiser. “Patients with COVID positive come to our emergency services very sick and need to be admitted to our ICU in record numbers.”

They urged people to be creative with the upcoming holidays, finding ways to celebrate that do not violate COVID-19 protocols.

“If we do our part now, there will be more available and alive to share the holidays next year,” said Vanessa Walker, an official at Sutter Health. “Therefore, we ask that you help us so that we can continue to pay attention to everyone who passes through our doors.”

While officials are asking the public not to meet with other people away from home during the holidays, they recognize that many people are likely to meet. Those who do so are urged to follow some guidelines:

Wear a mask

Keep your distance from others by keeping doors and windows open for proper airflow

Keep it short to minimize the risk of transmission

Long Beach Veterans Administration facilities began distributing the Modern vaccine Monday, giving the first shot to a veteran and health worker.

The facility is 113 VA centers nationwide that receive a limited supply of Modern features. This happened when the city of Long Beach reported an additional 14 deaths from the virus, the city’s highest daily number since the start of the pandemic.