The spike in Omicron cases has not only flooded US hospitals but also created scary moments and substantial complications for those seeking treatment for other issues, with less critical operations being postponed now. The average wait time at an emergency department is now several hours longer than typical.

Mat Gleason of California said he brought his 92-year-old father into a Los Angeles-area emergency room last week for a blood transfusion to address a blood problem. His father called him after 10 hours asking for a blanket, and waited afterward a total of 48 hours.

Gleason told AP that his father "assumed they forgot about me, and yet he wasn't the only person in that room. There were dozens."

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an average of more than 144,000 individuals were hospitalized in the United States with Covid as of Tuesday, the highest amount on record.

According to a study by the University of Minnesota, Covid patients account for more than 70 percent of hospital admissions in Jefferson, West Virginia; Orange, Indiana; Columbia, Pennsylvania; and Pender, North Carolina.

Research released by the CDC on Friday shows that Pfizer and Moderna injections gave 94 percent more protection against urgent care and hospital visits for patients who received a booster dose.

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The CDC released data Thursday showing unvaccinated adults between the ages of 50 and 64 were 44 times more likely to be hospitalized than people who had been completely vaccinated and had had booster shots. If the unvaccinated were above the age of 65, they were 49 times more likely to be hospitalized.

CDC Chief Rochelle Walensky said, "the data here show the protection provided by vaccines and the importance of being up to date on your Covid-19 vaccination – which, for tens of millions of Americans, means getting your booster dose.”

Rick Pollack, CEO and President of the American Hospital Association, stated that the spike has had a significant impact on the availability of care for non-Covid issues. More patients are being admitted to hospitals, while a large number of healthcare employees are working for Covid, exacerbating staffing problems that existed prior to the outbreak, with 23 percent of hospitals having staff shortages. 

Many are unable or reluctant to seek care for symptoms that do not appear to be emergencies, which has resulted in delays in recognizing illnesses like diabetes or high blood pressure, which worsen the longer they go untreated.

Dreading Covid

According to Dr. Claudia Fegan, chief medical officer for Cook County in Chicago, some people, particularly elderly patients, have avoided examinations and basic treatment due to their dread of Covid. As a result, "the people we're seeing now are substantially worse," she explained, citing cases of severe heart failure and cancer that could have been detected sooner.

Mike Bawden, a 59-year-old marketing consultant with a history of blood clots in his lungs, told AP that he couldn't obtain an appointment to see his doctor in Davenport, Iowa, since his coughing symptoms matched those of COVID-19.

Bawden went to a walk-in clinic after nearly two weeks and was referred to an emergency department. He claimed he waited nearly six hours in the overcrowded ER until a scan showed clots in his lungs. Bawden claims that if it hadn't been for the surge, he would have had a scan in a doctor's office earlier.

According to a Genesis spokesperson, “We are not exempt from the challenges medical centers across the United States are experiencing because of significant impact from Covid. We urge individuals to get vaccinated.”