California's Newsom says COVID-19 'more deadly'

California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Monday that 4,000 Californians had died in the last 14 days died as a result of COVID-19.

Bryan Wood reports.

"This is a deadly disease.

This is a deadly pandemic.

It remains more deadly today than at any point in the history of this pandemic." California Governor Gavin Newsom said on Monday that COVID-19 has killed 4,000 Californians in the last two weeks and expects numbers to rise as a result of the holidays.

"Well, we anticipate the surge on top of a surge.

It's going to put a lot of pressure on hospitals and ICUs, coming out of the holidays." Already with intensive care units stretching capacity, nearly 100 patients have been transferred to what the state calls 'alternate care' facilities and members of the National Guard have been deployed to assist overwhelmed medical staff.

Meanwhile, a more infectious variant has reared its head in states across the country.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo confirmed the state's first case of the variant in his remarks on Monday and that it is, in fact, more contagious.

It still remains to be seen if the variant increases hospitalisations.

If it does, Cuomo says it would be a quote 'game changer.'