SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — Coronavirus cases have continued increasing faster among South Bay residents compared to the rest of San Diego County, according to recent data.
Cases in San Ysidro grew 111% between April 14 and April 20, increasing from 32 cases to 59. By comparison, the number of coronavirus cases across the entire county are doubling every 24 days.
The 92154 zip code, which includes all of Otay Mesa, had 132 cases, the most number of any single zip code in the county, as of Tuesday evening.
“The number of hospitalizations aren’t just increasing for COVID-19. We see that for the flu season as well [in South Bay communities],” said San Diego County Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten, MD, MPH.
National City and Chula Vista have the highest percentage of cases relative to their populations. Last week, Chula Vista Mayor Mary Casillas Salas pointed out many residents travel outside their home zip code for essential services and work then may seek medical care closer to home. Currently, publicly available data only tracks where a person lives, not where the virus was contracted.
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Several South Bay hospitals reported an increase in coronavirus patients in recent days, but stressed staff are not overwhelmed by the caseload.
“We are efficiently and effectively caring for COVID-19 patients at Scripps Mercy Hospital Chula Vista. We have seen an increase in the number of COVID-19 inpatients at Scripps Chula Vista since early April, but patient volume appears to have stabilized in recent days,” said Scripps Health in a statement to News 8.
Scripps, like all hospitals in San Diego County, could relocate patients to less busy hospitals further north if needed.
“Scripps Health’s unified command center has a plan in place to provide treatment space, staffing, equipment and other support to all of our facilities, given shifts in patient demand,” added Scripps.
South Bay hospitals’ proximity to Mexico may also be adding to the number of patients, although they may not show up in county data, which only tracks positive cases among county residents.
Eric McDonald, M.D., M.P.H., the county’s medical director of epidemiology, estimated 95% of patients in county hospitals are U.S. citizens, but some may live in Mexico with ties to San Diego, Los Angeles or the Inland Empire.
“There are a significant number of U.S. citizens that live in that region [of Baja California] and legally are required to cross over if they need to access care,” said Dr. Wooten.