California sees record number of COVID-19 hospitalizations

Posted: Nov 29, 2020 / 06:35 PM PST / Updated: Nov 29, 2020 / 06:35 PM PST

FILE -In this May 6, 2020 photo a medical worker hands a self administered coronavirus test to a patient at a drive through testing site in a parking lot in the Woodland Hills section of Los Angeles. Public health officials have been urging people for weeks to avoid visiting family during the holiday season as COVID-19 cases spiral out of control in counties that include most of California’s population. Officials have estimated that 1 in 145 Los Angeles County residents is infected with COVID-19. About 12% of those infected could wind up in hospitals, authorities say Friday, Nov. 27. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — California broke a record Sunday with more than 7,400 coronavirus hospitalizations as counties statewide prepared for stricter COVID-19 restrictions to take effect amid surging cases and Thanksgiving travel.

Health officials are preparing for a wave of cases in the next two or three weeks that could be tied to holiday gatherings.

Counties statewide issued new restrictions, many set to take effect Monday, in an effort to avoid overwhelming hospitals.

Yet the state reported 7,415 coronavirus hospitalizations on Sunday, citing the most recently available data from the previous day. The new figure breaks the state’s previous record of 7,170 in July.

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