Key COVID-19 indicators surge again in US, straining hospitals

People wait outside a community center as long lines continue for individuals trying to be tested for COVID-19 during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in San Diego, California, US, Jan 10, 2022. (MIKE BLAKE / REUTERS)

LOS ANGELES / ROME / MEXICO CITY / MOSCOW – Another COVID-19 winter surge is brewing in the Untied States as the key indicators are all rising, swamping US hospitals with record number of patients sicken by respiratory diseases.
The United States is currently witnessing a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Seasonal flu activity is high across the US. So far this season, there have been at least 13 million illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations, and 7,300 deaths from flu, according to the latest estimates by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

The country averaged about 65,569 new cases each day in the week ending Dec 7, a 49.6 percent surge from the previous week, according to data of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Experts believe the real count of cases are much higher as many were underreported due to at-home COVID-19 tests.
The country has also continued to see an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations. An average of more than 4,800 virus-positive Americans were admitted to hospitals each day in the week ending Dec 6, a 13.8 percent increase over the week prior, CDC data showed.
Daily COVID-19 death count was also rising. The country averaged over 420 COVID-19 deaths in the most recent week, a 61.7 percent surge over the previous week.

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As of Dec 8, US counties, districts, or territories with a high or medium COVID-19 Community Level increased by 3.6 percent and 10.3 percent, respectively.
Currently, about 64 percent of sites across the country have reported moderate to high SARS-CoV-2 levels in wastewater. About 38 percent of sites reporting wastewater data have seen some of the highest levels for those sites since Dec 1 last year.

Meanwhile, multiple respiratory viruses are currently co-circulating with influenza in the United States, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), urging the public to take flu shots and COVID-19 boosters to prevent from severe illnesses.

Seasonal flu activity is high across the country. So far this season, there have been at least 13 million illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations, and 7,300 deaths from flu, according to the latest CDC estimates.

Of influenza A viruses detected and subtyped during the latest week ending De 3, 76 percent have been influenza A (H3N2) and 24 percent have been influenza A (H1N1), according to the CDC.

LOS ANGELES, Dec 12 (Xinhua) — COVID-19 related hospitalizations are surging again in the United States, posing severe threats to older adults.

Separately, hospitalizations for people with COVID-19 rose by more than 30 percent in two weeks. Much of the increase is driven by older people and those with existing health problems, said Rochelle Walensky, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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In California and New York, hospitalizations for seniors with COVID-19 have already surpassed those during spring and summer Omicron waves, according to Eric Topol, director and founder of the Scripps Research Translational Institute.

Italy's President Sergio Mattarella speaks during an official speech in front of his Switzerland's counterpart at the start of a two-day state visit in Swiss capital Bern, on Nov 29, 2022. (GABRIEL MONNET / AFP)

Italy

Italian President Sergio Mattarella cleared his schedule for the coming days after testing positive for COVID-19 over the weekend, media reports said Monday.

Citing a press release from the president's office on Saturday, media said Mattarella is, except for a slight fever, substantially asymptomatic and continuing to work while in isolation at Rome's Quirinale Palace.

Currently, emergency rooms in Italian hospitals were being "pushed to their limits" by the rising tide of COVID-19 and influenza infections as colder weather sweeps across Italy, according to the Italian Society for Emergency Medicine.

Mexico

A northern Mexican state reintroduced the obligatory use of face masks in closed public spaces, officials said on Monday, in a bid to reduce rising COVID-19 infections, as well as the spread of other respiratory diseases.

The health minister of Nuevo Leon state, home to Mexico's third-biggest city Monterrey, highlighted the updated guidelines in a news conference, and said that the measure will go into effect immediately.

Official figures show Nuevo Leon is one of the areas with the highest concentrations of COVID-19 in Mexico, with new daily cases ticking up to nearly 120 at the start of last week; the highest level since September.

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Around 86% of the state's population have received at least one dose of a COVID vaccine, according to the latest figures, meaning the COVID risk is classified at "medium." Locally, the benchmark for a "low risk" environment is a 90% vaccination rate.

Russia

Russia registered 6,376 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 21,671,528, the official monitoring and response center said on Monday.

The nationwide death toll increased by 50 to 392,661, and the number of recoveries grew by 5,032 to 21,066,616, the center said.