Orange County COVID-19 rates and hospitalizations continue to climb

Orange County COVID-19 rates and hospitalizations continue to climb

“Basically, this is delta,” said Andrew Noymer, an epidemiologist and UC Irvine [associate] professor of population health and disease prevention, of the rising number of cases. “The fall has come early because we have a more transmissible variant. … This summer we have a lot more vaccinated and some other people who are survivors of natural infection so you would expect less COVID, but it’s punching through again because we have this new variant that is highly spreadable.”