TORRANCE, Calif. – The recent death of 41-year-old Broadway actor Nick Cordero from coronavirus is a tragic reminder that no one, including young people, is immune to the disease. The latest numbers from the LA County Department of Public Health show a 50 percent increase in coronavirus cases among young people between the ages of 18 and 40. Hospitalizations among the same age group are now at 25 percent in July, up from over 10 percent in April.

Cordero’s prolonged battle with coronavirus also highlights serious complications from the virus, which is unlike anything medical professionals have seen, including Dr. Alex Hakim. He is a Critical Care Medicine Specialist at Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center and has been practicing medicine for over a decade.

“It doesn’t behave like any typical ICU infection that we’ve seen before,” said Dr. Hakim.

What You Need To Know


  • LA County Department of Public Health cites 50% increase in coronavirus cases among people between ages of 18 to 40

  • Hospitalizations among people between the ages of 18 and 40 are at 25% in July, up from over 10% in April

The typical infections Hakim sees in the ICU usually get better or worse but not when it comes to coronavirus.

“They don’t have these waves of good periods and bad periods,” he said. “They don’t have weeks at a time for survivors and non-survivors alike on the ventilator.”

Dr. Hakim said the mortality rate for coronavirus patients in ICUs in the U.S. is around 50 percent.

“It’s a huge resource-intensive disease and it’s very difficult to predict who is going to do well and who is not going to do well,” he said.

For those who do not do well, there can be serious complications.

“You’ll see small clots. People can have strokes, can have seizures related to small clots in the brain,” said Dr. Hakim. “A lot of the respiratory illness is related to small clots in the lungs.”

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He also sees an uptick in cases among younger people through community-based infection transfers.

For young people, the passing of 41-year-old Nick Cordero on Sunday night was a reminder of how deadly the virus can be.

 
 
 
 
 
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God has another angel in heaven now. My darling husband passed away this morning. He was surrounded in love by his family, singing and praying as he gently left this earth. ⠀ I am in disbelief and hurting everywhere. My heart is broken as I cannot imagine our lives without him. Nick was such a bright light. He was everyone’s friend, loved to listen, help and especially talk. He was an incredible actor and musician. He loved his family and loved being a father and husband. Elvis and I will miss him in everything we do, everyday. ⠀ To Nicks extraordinary doctor, Dr. David Ng, you were my positive doctor! There are not many doctors like you. Kind, smart, compassionate, assertive and always eager to listen to my crazy ideas or call yet another doctor for me for a second opinion. You’re a diamond in the rough. ⠀ ⠀ I cannot begin to thank everyone enough for the outpour of love , support and help we’ve received these last 95 days. You have no idea how much you lifted my spirits at 3pm everyday as the world sang Nicks song, Live Your Life. We sang it to him today, holding his hands. As I sang the last line to him, “they’ll give you hell but don’t you light them kill your light not without a fight. Live your life,” I smiled because he definitely put up a fight. I will love you forever and always my sweet man. ❤️

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His wife, Amanda Kloots, documented his months-long stay at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on social media, saying he faced setbacks from the virus including mini-strokes, blood clots and a leg amputation.

 
 
 
 
 
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Nick update day 85. ⠀ Nick is profoundly weak. Imagine how you feel getting the flu and how it can take your body a full week to recover. Now imagine how Nicks body feels, all that he has gone through and how long it will take him to recover. This will take time, a long time. ⠀ He interacts with his eyes, answering questions by looking up for yes and down for no. When he is alert he can also move his jaw. I have been doing passive physical therapy on him to help in any way I can to get him stronger, to keep his joints moving and engage his muscles. He cannot move his body yet. He has had some minor blood infections that are causing little blood pressure issues although those are under control. His vent settings are getting better and his numbers are trending in a better direction. He is relatively stable. ⠀ Is this defeating? Sometimes it is, I won’t lie. I wish I would walk into his room and he was able to give me a big smile and hold my hand. But instead of feeling defeated, I turn to feeling determined! I give him any and all energy I can. I tell him goals that the doctors would like to see. I insist that he CAN do this! People may look at me like I’m crazy. They may think that I don’t fully understand his condition because I’m smiling and singing in his room everyday. I’m just not going to mope around and feel sad for myself or him. That is not what Nick would want me to do. That is not my personality. I fight and I will continue to fight for Nick every single day. With God on our side anything can happen! 🤍 ⠀

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Dr. Hakim did not treat Cordero but said amputations due to the virus are not common. 

“It’s unusual to see that but nothing is off the table for a disease that causes people to clot so easily,” he said.

Days before Cordero died, Kloots spoke on “CBS This Morning.”  giving a glimpse into the uphill battle Cordero faced, saying they were exploring the possibility of a lung transplant.

Dr. Hakin said it is important to remember how the virus affects everyone, even those who are not sick.

“I have two kids under the age of two and I want them to go back to school and have real meaningful human contact,” he said. “We are not going to get here with the social distancing and how this spreads like wildfire.”