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'It Is Very Disappointing': Ventura County Sees Spike In Coronavirus Cases, Hospitalizations

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday that the state again saw its highest jump in daily coronavirus cases since March, with more than 7,000 cases reported.

"We cannot continue to do what we have done over the last number of weeks," Newsom said. "Many of us, understandably, developed a little cabin fever. Some, I would argue, have developed a little amnesia."

Newsom urged people to go back to their earlier efforts of maintaining physical distancing, wearing face coverings and washing their hands as the number of cases continues to increase in the state.

The governor's appeal comes just one day after the state health department reported more than 7,100 new cases, shattering the previous single-day high of just over 5,000.

Ventura County, which until recently had consistently been reporting low case loads, is now one of the counties that has seen a spike.

"It is very disappointing to see this happen," Dr. Robert Levin, the county's public health director, said.

And while many have claimed the increased number of cases was the result of increased testing capacity, Levin said the number of hospitalizations was a better sign of the uptick.

"There is a solid number that, whether you've been tested or not, is tried and true to reflect the true amount of COVID-19 in the community, and that is the people who are getting sick and sick enough to be hospitalized," he said. "That's the number we look at."

As of Wednesday evening, 48 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized in Ventura County with 16 being treated in intensive care units.

The county also reported an additional 99 cases of the novel coronavirus and one more death attributed to the illness, bringing countywide totals to 2,260 cases and 44 deaths. The county also reported that 1,473 people had recovered and 51,998 had been tested.

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