COVID-19 hospitalizations have been on the rise in the U.S. for the past month while a new coronavirus variant spreads.
Weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations increased more than 17% last week, with more than 22,500 new hospital admissions reported, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That means that new hospitalizations have surpassed the peak seen during the late summer wave in the U.S. The trend was expected given that holiday travel and indoor gatherings tend to increase the spread of COVID-19.
The CDC said in a report published Friday that COVID-19, flu and RSV activity are all elevated, but the agency added that hospital bed occupancy remains stable nationally.
“The amount of respiratory illness (fever plus cough or sore throat) causing people to seek healthcare is elevated or increasing across most areas of the country,” the CDC said.
When it comes to the coronavirus, emergency department visits are highest among infants and older adults, according to the agency.
The U.S. has recently seen the emergence of a new omicron subvariant called JN.1, which is a sublineage of BA.2.86, or “pirola.” According to CDC estimates, JN.1 was responsible for more than 21% of new infections in recent weeks.
The World Health Organization classifies JN.1 as a variant of interest given its large number of mutations. But it evaluates the public health risk of both BA.2.86 and JN.1 as low.
While vaccines are expected to work on both strains, only 16% of U.S. adults have rolled up their sleeves for the latest COVID-19 shot, according to national survey data.
