County vaccination of educators, essential workers to begin Monday

Los Angeles County Public Health officials prepare to expand vaccine eligibility to include three more sectors of essential workers who can start receiving vaccinations next week.

Educators, food and agriculture workers and emergency service workers will be able to receive

COVID-19 vaccinations beginning Monday, which amounts to more than 1 million people in the county, said Paul Simon, chief science officer for Public Health, during a news briefing Friday.

“People will be required to bring proof to their appointment that they live or work in L.A. County and work in the

eligible sectors to receive the vaccine,” Simon said.

Those eligible to receive a vaccine next week can bring employment badges or pay stubs as proof, and Simon encouraged everyone getting vaccinated to bring a driver’s license or identification card that lists an address.

As of Friday, Simon said nearly 2 million vaccine doses have been administered in the county, with 1,358,050 of those being first doses and 600,497 being second doses.

The Food and Drug Administration voted unanimously Friday to endorse the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which could be the third COVID-19 vaccine authorized for emergency use as early as this weekend, according to FDA officials.

Once authorized, 380,300 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be shipped to California, Gov. Gavin Newsom said during a news conference Friday, in addition to the regular PfizerBioNTech and Moderna vaccine allocations.

Simon said the county can expect a “significant amount” of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine once authorized and can further ramp up vaccine distribution as it is easier to store.

Public Health also released the following updated COVID-19 statistics Friday:

▪ Countywide COVID-19 cases reported in the past 24 hours: 1,838

▪ Total COVID-19 cases in L.A. County: 1,189,232

▪ New deaths related to COVID-19 reported in the past 24 hours: 144

Total COVID-19 deaths in L.A. County: 21,241

Hospitalizations countywide: 1,886, 30% of whom are in the ICU

Hospitalizations at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital as of Feb. 24: 17, with 1,142 discharged since the onset of the pandemic

COVID-19 cases reported in the Santa Clarita Valley in the past 24 hours: 56

Total COVID-19 cases in the SCV: 25,972

Total COVID-19 deaths in the SCV as of Feb. 25: 265

The number of SCV cases, including all area health care providers’ daily figures and those at Pitchess Detention Center, broken down into region, are as follows:

City of Santa Clarita: 19,024 Unincorporated — Acton: 444

Unincorporated — Agua Dulce: 252

Unincorporated — Bouquet Canyon: 43

Unincorporated — Canyon Country: 788

Unincorporated — Castaic: 3,577 (majority of Castaic cases come from Pitchess Detention Center; exact number unavailable)

Unincorporated — Lake Hughes: 40

Unincorporated — Newhall: 66

Unincorporated — Placerita Canyon: 1

Unincorporated — San Francisquito Canyon/Bouquet Canyon: 14

Unincorporated — Sand Canyon: 15

Unincorporated — Saugus: 131

Unincorporated — Saugus/ Canyon Country: 40

Unincorporated — Stevenson Ranch: 1,049

Unincorporated — Val Verde: 309

Unincorporated — Valencia: 179