According to a new tally by Reuters, COVID-19 hospitalizations in the United States could reach a new record high by Friday.
Hospitalizations for COVID-19 have spiked in recent weeks to almost 123,000 as the more infectious but probably less deadly Omicron variant takes its place as the dominant strain of the virus. The record currently stands at around 132,000. Hospitals are being overloaded as cases flood in and infected health care workers are forced to call out sick.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Additionally, many analysts have expressed concerns that hospitalization numbers are overinflated. Data released Friday by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) revealed that for more than half of the COVID patients in New York City hospitals, "COVID was not included as one of the reasons for admission," Fox News reported.
In other words, it is likely that many of these patients were admitted to the hospital for reasons entirely unrelated to COVID, then happened to test positive. However, NBC New York reports that although this data suggests Omicron is a "milder" strain, only "people who are fully vaccinated" should feel reassured.
-
Texas declares end to measles outbreakSpeed Read The vaccine-preventable disease is still spreading in neighboring states, Mexico and Canada
-
RFK Jr. shuts down mRNA vaccine funding at agencySpeed Read The decision canceled or modified 22 projects, primarily for work on vaccines and therapeutics for respiratory viruses
-
Measles cases surge to 33-year highSpeed Read The infection was declared eliminated from the US in 2000 but has seen a resurgence amid vaccine hesitancy
-
Kennedy's vaccine panel signals skepticism, changeSpeed Read RFK Jr.'s new vaccine advisory board intends to make changes to the decades-old US immunization system
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panelspeed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kidsSpeed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sickspeed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last yearspeed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
