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Fully vaccinated individuals can travel without having to get a COVID-19 test or quarantining upon arriving in L.A. County if they do not exhibit symptoms. | Courtesy photo by Lukas Souza on Unsplash
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Los Angeles County updated its travel advisory Monday to align with guidance issued late last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (C.D.C.) for travelers who have been fully vaccinated.
Residents are urged to avoid non-essential travel but people who are fully vaccinated — having waited two weeks after receiving the second dose of Pfizer or Moderna, or after the single dose of Johnson & Johnson — can now travel and will not be required to test or quarantine upon their arrival in Los Angeles County if they do not have any symptoms of illness.
Travelers who are not fully vaccinated must quarantine for seven full days after travel if they receive a negative COVID-19 test result taken three to five days after their arrival. If a traveler does not get tested after they arrive in los Angeles County, they must quarantine for a full 10 days.
All travelers, regardless of vaccination status, must self-monitor for symptoms for 14 days after arriving in L.A. County, and should get tested and isolate symptoms develop.
The updated advisory went into effect Monday as the county moved into the orange tier. Many business and sector protocols were updated over the weekend, including bars, breweries, wineries, and distilleries, family entertainment centers, gyms, movie theatres, restaurants, retail establishments, grocery stores, and outdoor live events.
“Cases, hospitalizations and deaths are down to numbers we have not seen since the early days of the pandemic, and we are now officially in the orange tier, meaning more businesses and activities are open,” said Barbara Ferrer, director of Public Health.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed one new death and 366 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday.
Three months ago, there were 14,200 daily cases. Since then, Los Angeles County has experienced a 97% drop in the number of daily cases, falling to fewer than 400 in late-March. During the same time period, daily hospitalizations fell 92%, from more than 8,000 daily hospitalizations to 650 daily hospitalizations, and the number of daily deaths dropped 96%, from 252 daily deaths to nine daily deaths.
Despite improving metrics, officials worry that L.A. County could see rising case numbers currently seen in the rest of the country.
“With more variants, increases in cases across the country and much of the world, and lots more intermingling here in L.A. County, we will need to continue following public health safety measures if we want to hold on to our gains,” cautioned Ferrer. “So, it makes sense to be clear about what it will take to continue the recovery journey and to remain committed to following the essential safety measures: Wear a mask. Stay 6 feet apart from others while in public. Wash your hands. And please, get vaccinated when you’re eligible.”
As of March 25, approximately 2,493,301 persons who reside in Los Angeles County (including Long Beach and Pasadena) have been vaccinated with at least one dose of vaccine since Jan. 1, 2021. While the majority of the L.A. County population has not yet been vaccinated, the increasing rate of vaccination is credited with reducing infections across the county.
This week, 397,430 doses were allocated to the county. The allocation for this week is higher than the 378,000 doses received last week, 54,000 of which were from Johnson & Johnson. This week, the county received 118,100 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. “Unfortunately, Los Angeles County is still not receiving enough doses,” public health officials said in a statement. Sites across the county currently have the ability to administer nearly 700,000 doses.
On April 15, vaccines any resident in Los Angeles County who is 16 and older will become eligible for the vaccine.
