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Washington [US], December 31 (ANI/Sputnik): The United States' health care system is experiencing an unprecedented overload amid the spread of COVID-19 Omicron variant, with 78% of beds in intensive care units (ICU) occupied all over the country, Dr James Phillips, chief of disaster medicine at George Washington University Hospital said as reported by CNN on Thursday.
"What we're experiencing right now is an absolute overwhelming of the emergency departments," Dr. Phillips told the broadcaster. This week the US hit a new pandemic record, with daily COVID-19 cases topping half a million and a new highest number of 378 children admitted to the hospital with COVID-19. The broadcaster added that the number of hospitalizations has risen dramatically, almost tripling in some states and causing the congestion of healthcare facilities. As of Thursday, 78% of ICU beds are occupied nationwide, 22% of which are COVID-19 patients, according to the data from the US' Health and Human Services Department. The total number of COVID-19 infections in the US for the entire period of the pandemic is estimated at 52.5 million with 812,577 deaths. Like many other countries, the US is now facing a new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic linked to the spread of the Omicron strain. (ANI/Sputnik)
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