Rising COVID-19 hospitalizations pose threats for U.S. seniors

COVID-19 related hospitalizations are surging again in the United States, posing severe threats to older adults.

Hospitalizations for people with COVID-19 rose by more than 30 percent in two weeks. Much of the increase is driven by older people and those with existing health problems, said Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In California and New York, hospitalizations for seniors with COVID-19 have already surpassed those during spring and summer Omicron waves, according to Eric Topol, director and founder of the Scripps Research Translational Institute.

The United States authorized new COVID-19 booster shots which targets both Omicron and the original coronavirus, and has expanded the use of the booster to include children as young as 6 months.

"But our booster rates among seniors are pathetically low," with only about a third getting the shot, Topol said.

Over the course of the pandemic, over 1 in 5 COVID-19 deaths in the United States was among those who were in a long-term care facility, according to data of the Kaiser Family Foundation.