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U.S. hospitalizations surge to record high
The United States reached another dismal milestone in the pandemic: Covid-19 hospitalizations hit an all-time high of 61,964 today.
The country has seen two previous spikes in hospitalizations following surges in the spring and summer, according to the Covid Tracking Project. The record was 59,940, recorded on April 15, and a similar peak of 59,718 on July 23.
But unlike the last two spikes, when the number of hospitalizations declined following a drop in infection rates, this time cases are soaring with no end in sight. The U.S. recorded more than 130,000 new cases yesterday, its second highest ever, and more than 800,000 cases in the last week — around three times as many as have been recorded in Canada since the pandemic began.
As hospitals fill up, they are facing critical shortages of staff, which are limiting their ability to add more beds to care for virus patients. The problem is particularly acute in Western states that have historically struggled to attract doctors and other medical workers, and it’s causing some states to take previously unthinkable measures.
In North Dakota, which has the worst infection and death rates per capita in the country, the governor announced that asymptomatic health care workers who have tested positive for the virus could continue to work, with restrictions, including treating Covid-19 patients.
To fight a wave of cases in El Paso, Texas, the Department of Defense deployed three military medical teams and the state sent more than 1,400 health care workers. The county is more than doubling its supply of mobile morgues, from four to 10, to handle the spike in deaths.
But there is a limit to the amount of help available.
When cases spiked in the Northeast in the spring or in the South during the summer, nurses and doctors flew in from across the country to lend a hand. But with cases surging in so many places, health officials are describing a kind of national gridlock.
“Everywhere is either hard hit or is watching their Covid numbers go up, and are expecting to get a lot of flu patients,” said Nancy Foster, vice president of the American Hospital Association. “The ability of health care professionals to pick up and leave their hometowns is very limited.”
The New York Times