Northeast Has Worst Momentum in U.S. Covid Hospitalization Surge

(Bloomberg) --

The Northeast is leading the alarming increase in Covid-19 hospitalizations across the U.S., with large jumps in New York and Pennsylvania, as holiday gatherings threaten to exacerbate the situation.

Hospitalizations in the most densely populated region of the U.S. are up 63% in the past 14 days to 14,071, the most alarming momentum in the nation, according to Covid Tracking Project data.

Patients hospitalized with Covid-19 have increased by 79% and 80% each in New York and Pennsylvania, respectively, in the past two weeks and even more in the less-populous states of Maine and New Hampshire. Per capita hospitalizations are still much higher in many Midwest states, where they have just recently begun to decline from all-time highs. But if current momentum persists, the stress on hospital staffing would quickly intensify in the Northeast.

The West also has seen a notable uptick in hospitalizations in the past two weeks, including in California.

Hospitalization data have come increasingly into focus after the Thanksgiving holiday led to a temporary distortion in case and death statistics. Limited staffing in labs and some government offices contributed to a period of underreporting, which is typically followed by a few days of catch-up.

The New York area was the hardest hit in the U.S. during March and April, and the current hospitalization growth in recent weeks is “nowhere close” to that situation, according to remarks Tuesday from Gareth Rhodes, a member of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Covid-19 task force.

Still, the state is calling on hospitals to begin increasing the number of beds available, Cuomo said during the same virus briefing call.

According to Covid Tracking Project data:

• On a per capita basis, the states with the worst current hospitalizations are South Dakota, Indiana, Nevada, Nebraska and Illinois.
• Tennessee posted record cases on Monday.

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