The Orange County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Nov. 29 to extend the county’s local health emergency for the respiratory virus known as RSV for another 30 days.
The emergency allows the county to access federal and state resources for assistance and seek mutual aid from neighboring counties.
The decision came after spokespersons for local medical facilities recently informed hospitals they are at maximum capacity with children affected by the virus.
Staff from Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) told supervisors they have had to move some emergency patients into inpatient beds to make room.
“Our emergency departments are full,” Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, the county health officer, told supervisors. “[Hospitals] are exhausted and overwhelmed.”
A health emergency declaration over RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, was first initiated on Oct. 31 by the health department, and later approved by Orange County supervisors Nov. 2.
RSV is a relatively common respiratory virus. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most patients recover in one to two weeks, but for infants and the elderly it can sometimes be more serious. A higher number of cases recently have been reported by the CDC.
Difficulty breathing, dehydration, and persistent or high fever, are symptoms parents should watch out for in their children according to the Orange County Health Care Agency.
Before the vote, several residents voiced opposition to the extension of the emergency declaration, fearing it might lead to COVID-era restrictions.
“Try and find the funding another way … we don’t want to go down this alley again, where we don’t know if there’s going to be quarantines,” one resident said during the meeting.
There was one speaker of 17 who spoke in support of the emergency extension.
“Yesterday, we saw our highest volume of patients in our emergency department than we have ever seen, far surpassing what we saw in COVID at 326 patients,” Desiree Thomas, executive director of ER services critical care and behavioral health at Providence St. Joseph Hospital said in support of the extension.
Supervisor Don Wagner said the extension of the order would not lead to pandemic-like restrictions.
“This board is not looking to revisit COVID, to impose masks, to impose school restrictions, to impose business restrictions,” he said. “We are trying to give [Children’s Hospital Orange County] the help it asks us for. We’re trying to give St. Joe’s the help it asks us for.”
