COVID-19 hospitalizations rise sharply in at least 9 states after Memorial Day

Health officials in nine states — Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, California, Oregon, Arkansas, Mississippi, Utah, and Arizona — are reporting sharp upticks in the number of coronavirus hospitalizations following Memorial Day.

Looking at available data, The Washington Post found that in most of these states, the number of cases and hospitalizations have both increased, and in some places, like Arizona, intensive care units are nearing capacity — as of Monday, 76 percent of all ICU beds in the state are being used. There are 1,243 current hospitalizations in Arizona, a 49 percent increase since Memorial Day.

In Utah, the seven-day average of new cases has increased 12 of the last 15 days, and during the same time period, the state's current number of hospitalizations more than doubled to 230. The Utah government tweeted on Tuesday that the spike in cases is "not explained by more testing or just one outbreak. Eased restrictions don't cause increased cases alone — it's our actions that cause COVID-19 to spread. Keep your distance and wear a mask in public and stay home if you're sick."

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The Post notes that it is difficult to track hospitalizations, as not every state reports their numbers, and some data is incomplete.