Hospitals across the United States are bracing against the spread of the Omicron strain of Covid-19. The new wave has greatly impacted America’s healthcare systems. In late December, 95% of all new sequenced Covid cases were reported to be the Omicron variant. Omicron is a variant of Covid-19 that is three times more contagious than the Delta variant and six times more contagious than normal Covid-19 according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Overall, 77,516,009 cases have been reported, and 915,425 deaths have been reported across the U.S. Covid 19 and the Omicron variant are currently at the highest community transmission according to the CDC and have resulted in a drastic spike in cases across America.
North Carolina is currently one of the most impacted states with nearly 5,385 hospitalized Covid patients as of Jan. 27, as reported by the NY Times. Hospitals in North Carolina are under great strain from the spread of Omicron with an average of 591 new hospital admissions a week.
Wake County, the largest county in North Carolina, has nearly 40% of ICU (Intensive Care Unit) beds in use by Covid patients, 10% more than Jan. 2021. With 291 new hospital admissions over the last seven days, Wake County hospitals have been under extreme stress from all of the new arrivals. Staffing shortages at hospitals have led to the governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, to ask for federal help, stating, "We continue to monitor hospital capacity and staffing needs and have requested resources, including additional nurses from FEMA." FEMA, or the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is responsible for sending help to emergency situations around the U.S. and has been providing emergency medical support to the states throughout the pandemic.
With the high transmission rate of Covid-19 and the Omicron variant, it is important to follow Covid guidelines in the community. The CDC advises people in Wake County to wear a mask in public indoor settings as a method to lessen the spread of Covid and the Omicron variant.
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