Covid-19 is set to become one of the leading causes of death in Los Angeles County, according to Health Director Barbara Ferrer.
Coronary heart disease is the top killer, and claimed nearly 6,000 lives in the first six months of 2019. In the first six months of this year, more than 4,200 people in Los Angeles County died as a result of Covid-19.
Ferrer acknowledged that the comparison is not exact as data from two separate years is being used. This year’s data has not yet been finalized, she said.
“It’s killing more people than Alzheimer’s disease, other kinds of heart disease, stroke, and [Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease],” Ferrer said.
Comparing Covid-19 to the flu, Ferrer provided data that shows Covid-19 killing twice as many people in six months as the flu did in eight months.
Los Angeles added 3,266 coronavirus cases to its cumulative tally, bringing the county’s total to 164,870. The total number of deaths recorded in Los Angeles County stands at 4,213.
“Younger adults are driving the high rate of infections, but the older adults are the ones who are dying,” Ferrer said, urging the public to consider others when venturing out.