As Millions Prepare To Return To School And College, COVID-19 Is On The Rise

A summer surge in COVID-19 hospitalizations has become as much a part of the season as sunscreen. This year’s surge, however, is not as severe as in the past.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, for the second week in a row, the number of people admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 rose significantly – by more than 12%. An additional 9,056 Americans were hospitalized with the virus last week which is a 12.5% rise.

Garry Lewis, who was diagnosed with COVID last fall, has discussed the summer surge with his doctor.

“I had a respiratory infection last week, and I just got over that,” Lewis said. “And my doctor told me COVID is up and so are respiratory infections. I actually thought it was COVID, again. If I compared it to COVID, with the respiratory infection, I didn’t feel nauseous, have chills or fever. It was like a bad cold with coughing.”

The surge in hospitalizations exceeds 12% in about two dozen states. Alabama, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming have experienced a 20% increase in new COVID hospital admissions.

ILewis works for a HBCU and has seen the pandemic wax and wane, impacting the education of the nation’s students. And as schools and universities prepare for the start of a new year, he offered advice many Americans shared frequently during the early months of the pandemic.

“I think this is the new norm … keep washing hands and be careful in social gatherings. You have to do what you can to stay safe. Do what you can to take care of yourself.”

Health experts say the first new COVID-19 vaccines produced for this fall season will most likely be available by the end of September, once the Food and Drug Administration and the CDC sign off on the new shots which will target the XBB variants which descended from the original Omicron variant.