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Major hospitals in Los Angeles County reportedly declined ambulance transfers over the weekend, as COVID-19 cases soared and the region's health-care system approached capacity.
Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, one of the jurisdiction's largest hospitals, could no longer accept patients arriving in ambulances on Sunday night, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday. The situation lasted roughly 12 hours while a group of roughly 30 individuals waited to receive care and the facility's intensive care unit delayed admissions, according to the newspaper.
Other medical centers scattered across the county were reportedly pushed to similar lengths. The Times noted that Memorial Hospital of Gardena, operating past maximum capacity limits, stopped accepting ambulance calls for four hours on Monday, and Community Hospital of Huntington Park closed its front entrance as personnel diverted their attention to an average of two ambulance arrivals per hour. Last week, the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital, located in South Los Angeles, was forced to place new patients in a makeshift tent constructed outside the medical center itself due to lack of space, its emergency department director told The New York Times.
Newsweek reached out to the Memorial Hospital of Gardena and Community Hospital of Huntington Park for confirmation and updates regarding their respective capacities on Tuesday, but did not receive replies in time for publication. The Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center could not immediately provide a response.
California has recorded a drastic surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations throughout the past month, with Los Angeles experiencing the state's most severe increases. The county's confirmed infection count rose by nearly 25 percent during the latter half of December, according to health department data, bringing its total to 697,831 cumulative cases on Monday.
While cases climb, hospitals are seeing an influx of COVID-19 patients who require moderate or intensive treatment for their symptoms. Additional figures, released by the California Department of Public Health, reflected a sharp decline in ICU vacancies across Los Angeles since the first week of October. Of the county's 2,500 licensed ICU beds, just 356 remained available on Tuesday.
Newsweek contacted the county's health department for comment but did not receive a reply in time for publication.
California hospitals are struggling to meet the growing demand for treatment as COVID-19 cases to continue to chart a steep upward trajectory statewide. More than 2.1 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 in California as of Tuesday, and about half contracted the infection since this time last month. Cases confirmed across the state rose by 35 percent over the past two weeks, according to the California Department of Public Health.
State and local officials have implemented strict mitigation protocols, including widespread stay-at-home orders effected across the majority of California, in efforts to reduce pressure on medical facilities. California Governor Gavin Newsom extended the orders affecting Southern California on Monday in light of the enduring outbreak.
