West Virginia COVID Cases Rise 72 Percent, Hospitalizations up 29 Percent Since Christmas

West Virginia has seen COVID cases increase 72 percent in the past week, with hospitalizations up 29 percent since Christmas. There are 721 patients hospitalized for COVID in the state as of Monday, the most since mid-October.

In the past week, the state reported 11,138 confirmed COVID cases, breaking the one-week record of 9,587 set in mid-September, according to the state's Department of Health and Human Resources' dashboard. The state had over 2,000 COVID cases in a day for the first time, reporting at least that many on three consecutive days, and reached a record high of 2,564 cases on Friday.

The total number of active cases increased to 15,015 as of Sunday, doubling since December 24. It's the most since September, when active cases rose to a record of almost 30,000.

Governor Jim Justice had warned that the latest surge could overrun hospitals. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 81% of intensive-care unit beds statewide are in use, including 31% for COVID-19 patients. Justice has implored state residents to get vaccinated for the virus, including booster shots. About half of the state's population is fully vaccinated and 61% have received at least one dose, according to state health officials.

Most of the COVID cases are from the Delta variant, with only 75 identified Omicron variant COVID cases, the West Virginia MetroNews radio network reported.

https://www.newsweek.com/west-virginia-covid-cases-rise-72-percent-hospitalizations-29-percent-since-christmas-1665195