A new study based on CDC data from Los Angeles County that was recorded between May 1 and July 2 found that unvaccinated people were nearly five times more likely to be infected with COVID than people who had gotten their shots.
Meanwhile, vaccine mandates are being implemented by many employers, including the city of San Diego, which said on Thursday night that it would require all city employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of continued employment, a move followed by the city of Encinitas.
Is there an end in sight to the pandemic?
"There is an end inside if we can everybody will do their part," said Dr. Maria Carriedo-Ceniceros, who is San Ysidro Health's chief medical officer.
Get Southern California news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC LA newsletters.
Carriedo-Ceniceros explained that the new CDC study determined exactly how many more unvaccinated people with COVID-19 ending up needing treatment in a hospital setting.
"That's what we're seeing now, the majority of patients in the hospital or those that are unvaccinated," said Dr. Maria Carriedo-Ceniceros.
The study looked at more than 43,000 patients, which Carriedro-Ceniceros considered to be a good sampling, and found similar trends in San Diego County.
California
News from across California
So far, 85% of San Diego County residents 12 and older have been vaccinated with at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.
