By Peter Szekely

(Reuters] – Hospitals across the U.S. Midwest have been “preparing for what the worst” due to Omicron infections rapidly spreading. Their intensive care units are already stretched from a strong wave of COVID-19, and their staff is also suffering.

In recent weeks, the virus has hit Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana harder than other states. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data shows that COVID-19 victims occupy nearly one fourth of the hospital beds.

According to HHS, the impact of COVID-19 is greater in intensive care units. COVID-19 patients account for at least one-third of all beds.

Ohio’s hospital population has more than doubled since early November, and the stress on the system’s capacity was especially acute in the northeast part of the state that includes Cleveland, Ohio Hospital Association spokesman John Palmer said.

“If these hospitalizations keep going up, it’s going to reach a breaking point,” said Palmer, whose association represents 250 hospitals and 15 health systems.

Palmer explained that Ohio hospitals were unable to accommodate 78% and 81% ICU beds respectively. In anticipation of the Omicron surge, they are moving some patients from Ohio hospitals to another facility.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine deployed more than 1,000 National Guard soldiers, 150 of whom were medically-trained professionals, last week to relieve depleted hospital personnel of a range of medical and nonmedical duties, including testing, transporting patients, and providing food service.

“We hope for the best but we’re preparing for the worst when it comes to Omicron,” said Palmer. “The reality is that we have a lot of unvaccinated Ohioans.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 55% of Ohio’s eligible population are fully vaccinated. This is well below the national average, which stands at nearly 62%. According to data from the state, 94% of COVID-19-related patients in Ohio were not fully vaccinated as of Dec. 15.

Omicron, which accounts for 73% U.S. coronavirus infection, has overtaken Delta. Although it has been shown to be less dangerous and more likely to infect an individual in the hospital than Delta, early studies show that Omicron is still a highly contagious virus. However, there are concerns about its rapid spread which could lead to a large number of patients in need of care.

After the 18-week increase in patients with COVID-19, the state Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Lynn Sutfin stated that hospitals are “struggling to manage COVID-19 and other patients of high acuity” due to the Delta’s rise in Michigan.

According to data from federal HHS, hospitals in Michigan use 82% of regular beds and 87% ICU beds.

In early February, 76% of COVID-19 hospitalized patients had not been vaccinated.

Michigan and Indiana were among the six states President Joe Biden said this week that they would receive immediate assistance from federal emergency teams. Each team has more than 100 paramedics and clinical staff.

Other states include New Hampshire, Arizona and Vermont. According to a Reuters tally, four of these six states were in the top 10 countries for COVID-19 hospitalizations rates last week.

According to Dr. Susan Bleasdale (system’s medical director of infection prevention, control), COVID-19 patients are now filling Chicago’s University of Illinois Health Hospitals faster than last winter’s spike.

She said that Omicron case numbers are increasing by a factor of two or three per day, and our health system is at high risk.

New York City’s COVID-19 hospital population, however, has been stable for the last month despite the emergence of Omicron-induced illnesses in recent weeks. New York City claims 71% are completely vaccinated.

At a Wednesday briefing, Mayor Bill de Blasio stated that “the good news is that our hospitals are doing very well” and described a different reality in comparison to 2020. He also said there are fewer ICUs now than in 2020.