Topline:
Testing wastewater for coronavirus is the best metric we have to estimate how much virus is circulating. The level of coronavirus in L.A. County’s wastewater has dropped to 30% of last winter’s peak — that’s down 22% from the previous week.
All indicators trending downward: Fewer people are in the hospital with COVID-19 in L.A. County. During the week ending Feb. 17, there was an average of 376 COVID-positive hospitalized patients, a decrease from the average of 482 COVID-positive hospitalized patients for the previous week.
Deaths caused by COVID are down from a high of about nine people a day in early January to now four people each day.
What about the rest of the country? Nationally, the wastewater viral activity level for COVID-19 is high, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but is trending downward. People can still get sick as cases decrease. The virus is circulating at about the same rate as in early November.
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