OC COVID-19 hospitalizations, infection rates remain high

Andrew Noymer, an epidemiologist and UC Irvine [associate] professor of population health and disease prevention, told City News Service Tuesday the trend is not encouraging. Last year, the Fourth of July did not fuel a surge, but this year may be different, Noymer said. “This July, I wouldn’t rule it out because we’re dealing with such a more transmissible variant now,” Noymer said. The rise in infections is “pretty substantial,” Noymer said. “There’s a lot of COVID out there, but the fact we haven’t seen a substantial mortality is a good sign that things are working.”