Massachusetts Coronavirus Hospitalizations Up 129% In Past Month, Sudders Says
BOSTON (CBS) -- Hospitalizations due to the coronavirus have skyrocketed in Massachusetts. Health and Human Services Sec. Marylou Sudders said Wednesday that the number of people hospitalized for COVID-19 in the state has surged 129% in the past month.
There were over 900 people hospitalized with the virus in late November. Now there are more than 2,250, Sudders said.
"Hospitals throughout Massachusetts are experiencing limited bed capacity," she said. "They're feeling the strain to care for all the individuals who are coming to the hospital through emergency departments."
Over the same period, hospitals have seen 106% growth in the number of coronavirus patients in the ICU.
Sudders said the state is working with hospitals to make sure anyone who shows up in an emergency room gets appropriate care, whether it's at that facility or a field hospital.
A field hospital in Lowell run by UMass is scheduled to open on Monday, Sudders said.
The field hospital at the DCU Center in Worcester is a lot busier in the second surge of coronavirus cases than it was during the first surge. So far, it has treated 161 COVID-19 cases in 22 days.