As Kern’s hospitals get closer to reaching max capacity, local emergency medical services are forced to become the temporary emergency departments for many patients seeking ambulances during this COVID-19 surge.
Some medical experts say taking COVID-19 precautions, such as wearing masks and social distancing, will likely decrease the number of Valley Fever cases.
In just two months, Kern County went from having less than 5,000 active cases of COVID-19 to having more than 50,000 cases during the holiday season.