SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - San Diego County is seeing another uptick in COVID-19 cases, with907 reported Wednesday. That's up from the 649 cases reported just one day before. The state has also seen an increase in COVID-19 transmission likely due to relaxed restrictions and
"We definitely know that for the last couple of weeks we've seen a steady increase in cases," said Dr. William Tseng, the physician vaccine lead for Kaiser Permanente in San Diego.
Experts say the cases are likely higher than what is reported because not everyone reports positive at-home tests.
Dr. Tseng is hopeful that if we see a significant surge locally, the county will be prepared.
"Right now we have plenty of availability in terms of resources to be able to take care of people," he said. "We’ve got plenty of Paxlovid out there, plenty of monoclonal antibodies, we’ve got Remdesivir available. So if you do a test at home and you do test positive, please call your healthcare provider, they can get you the medication."
He said right now there are approximately 110 hospitalizations countywide, a stable number, but Dr. Abisola Olulade, family medicine with Sharp Rees-Stealy, worries this will soon rise if the upward trend continues since hospitalizations tend to lag behind rising cases.
"We also have to remember that long haul covid is an outcome that has really affected a lot of people's quality of life, so ending up in the hospital is not the only terrible thing that can happen," said Dr. Olulade.
The uptick in cases comes as the U.S. nears a grim milestone of 1 million COVID-19 related deaths.
Doctors recommend masking up in crowded areas and taking necessary precautions, even when mandates are not in place. Especially with graduations, proms, and summer events coming up.
"It's sad, really sad. It's very heartbreaking for those families who are waking up today without their loved ones. especially because in a lot of those cases it was quite preventable by masking and getting vaccinated, so we really want to learn from the past and not repeat those same mistakes," said Olulade.