As COVID-19 Cases Soar, More Hospitals Report ICUs Nearing Capacity, With Worst To Come

More than a quarter of the nation's occupied ICU beds are being used for COVID-19 patients.

Hospitals across the nation are buckling under the surge in COVID-19 infections linked to the highly transmissible delta variant of the coronavirus, with some states reporting their intensive care units are rapidly filling with patients, much like winter’s wave of cases before vaccines were readily accessible. More than a quarter of the nation’s ICU beds in use are currently occupied by COVID-19 patients, according to figures maintained by the Department of Health and Human Services. But an increasing number of states have said their intensive care wards are reaching capacity, with 1 in 5 ICUs at or over 95% full nationwide, The New York Times reported. Public health officials from Hawaii to Mississippi, from Oregon to Texas have portended bleak statistics in the coming weeks, saying hospitalizations are already higher now than they were in January. Alabama said Tuesday it was out of ICU beds and was actually at “negative” capacity, and Oregon said hospitalizations rose 11% overnight as new cases soared.