Record Number of COVID-19 Hospitalizations Seen in Florida

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida reached a new high this week, the Florida Hospital Association (FHA) says.

Hospitalizations are 13 percent higher than the previous peak on July 23, 2020, and 60 percent of the state's hospitals are expected to face a "critical staffing shortage" in the next seven days, the association said Tuesday, CNN reported.

Currently, there are 11,515 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, and 84 percent of in-patient beds and 86.5 percent of intensive care unit (ICU) beds in the state are occupied, according to the FHA. It said that 21 percent of hospitalized COVID-19 patients are in the ICU and 13 percent are on ventilators, CNN reported. The FHA figures are from a survey of hospitals that was completed Aug. 2 and represents 82 percent of the state's acute care hospitals.

"Current hospitalizations and the growth rate continue to be extremely troubling," Mary Mayhew, president and CEO of the Florida Hospital Association, said in a statement. "But vaccines work! The fact that less than 3 percent of current hospitalizations arrived from nursing homes and long-term care facilities shows the state's focus on vaccinating and protecting Florida's seniors and most vulnerable has worked."

Just two states -- Florida and Texas -- accounted for one-third of all COVID-19 cases reported in the United States in the past week, White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said during a briefing Monday, CNN reported.