Surge in cases has overwhelmed hospitals nationwide, and about one-quarter face critical staffing shortages<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
TUESDAY, Jan. 11, 2022 (HealthDay News) — The United States has passed another grim milestone in the pandemic as the omicron variant races across the country: COVID-19 hospitalizations have now eclipsed a previous peak, which was seen last January.<\/p>\n
There were 142,388 people hospitalized with COVID-19 as of Sunday, more than the previous record of 142,315 hospitalizations reported on Jan. 14, 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the seven-day average of daily hospitalizations reached 132,086 by Sunday, an 83 percent increase from two weeks ago, The New York Times<\/em> reported. Hospitalization numbers include people who test positive for the coronavirus after being admitted for other conditions, so some patients may have been admitted for causes other than COVID-19, The Times<\/em> noted. There is no national database showing the actual number of patients hospitalized specifically for COVID-19. <\/p>\n COVID-19 hospitalizations are now being driven in large part by people younger than 60 years: Daily COVID-19 admissions among people older than 60 years remain lower than last winter. Data in areas that first saw omicron surges now show deaths spiking sharply — not as fast as case rates, but fast enough to hint at future devastation.<\/p>\n The surge in cases has overwhelmed hospitals nationwide, and about one-quarter face critical staffing shortages, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, The Times<\/em> reported. Some states have deployed the National Guard to help, while others are having hospitals delay elective surgeries.<\/p>\n Doctors, nurses, and other medical staff are also getting COVID-19, and although most are vaccinated and have not been hospitalized, they cannot work. That leaves hospitals even more overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients and less able to handle other emergencies like cancer surgeries, heart attacks, appendicitis, and traumatic injuries, The Times<\/em> reported. In an unusual departure from prior rules, some hospital workers with COVID-19 infections who have mild or no symptoms are continuing to work, the newspaper said.<\/p>\n