Coronavirus updates: US reports nearly 300,000 new cases in all-time high

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear spoke out Monday after Walgreens stores in Louisville and Lexington, Kentucky, gave COVID-19 vaccines to members of the general public. 

Beshear said at a press conference that last week, the pharmacies were left with extra doses of the vaccine after administering it to long-term care facilities, so, they offered the leftover doses to average citizens. This, the governor said, does not follow government protocol, as the vaccine is not yet being given to the general public.

"I don't think that this was intentional, and we have to understand that in an undertaking this massive that mistakes are going to happen," Beshear said. "I believe that here a mistake happened in the thawing, but the reaction wasn't what it should've been."

In a statement, Walgreens said that per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's guidance, Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine can be at refrigerated temperatures for only five days, so, to avoid wasting doses of the valuable vaccine after giving it to at-risk adults in long-term care facilities, they used the leftover doses they had on residents. 

The doses were offered to local first responders, Walgreens pharmacy and store team members and residents of the community, many of whom were over age 65, Walgreens said.

"These measures were taken to ensure every dose of a limited vaccine supply was used to protect patients and communities," the company added. "We will utilize excess vaccine inventory in priority patient populations and continue to work closely with state and federal health agencies in our efforts to vaccinate residents in long-term care facilities and ensure requested doses meet their needs."

Los Angeles County officials announced Monday that it will require anyone who traveled or is planning to travel back into the county to quarantine for 10 days.

"The best way to safely quarantine is to not leave your home or allow any visitors to your home, and to find others who can help you buy groceries and other essential necessities," The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a statement.

The county is close to 10,000 coronavirus related deaths and since Nov. 9, the average daily hospitalizations of people with COVID-19 increased more than 670%, according to the Health Department.

Los Angeles Country recorded 44 new coronavirus deaths Monday, bringing the total number of fatalities to 9,555, according to the county Health Department.

LA County Director of Public Health, Dr. Barbara Ferrer noted that the county is on its way to a stark milestone.

"[We] could be approaching a total number of 10,000 deaths shortly, which will be the saddest number since the start of the pandemic," she said at a news conference.

Roughly 13,661 new cases were reported Monday and the county hospitalization rate is now at 6,914, the highest since the pandemic began, according to Ferrer.

"Last week we lost someone due to COVID-19 every 10-15 minutes," she said.

In the meantime, the county has administered 66,628 doses of the coronavirus vaccine at acute care hospitals and 1,478 doses at skilled nursing facilities as of Dec. 26, according to the Health Department.

-ABC News' Cammeron Parrish contributed to this report.

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff will receive the COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday morning in Washington D.C, the Biden transition team confirmed to ABC News on Monday.

President-elect Joe Biden received the first dose of the two-dose vaccine on live television last week.

-ABC News' Beatrice Peterson contributed to this report.