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In response, the NHS will begin setting up âsurge hubsâ this week at eight hospitals around England, each with the capacity to treat about 100 patients. Staff are preparing plans to create as many as 4,000 âsuper surgeâ beds should they be needed, the NHS said Thursday.
âWe do not yet know exactly how many of those who catch the virus will need hospital treatment, but given the number of infections we cannot wait to find out before we act, and so work is beginning from today to ensure these facilities are in place,â NHS England medical director Stephen Powis said in a statement.
The number of people in England hospitalized with COVID-19 increased to 10,462 on Wednesday from 7,366 on Dec. 24, government figures show. Wednesdayâs number was the highest since March 1. The figure is still well below the peak of 34,336 recorded on Jan. 18.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has resisted implementing new restrictions on business and social interactions during the holiday season, instead emphasizing an expanded vaccine booster program to control the spread of omicron.
Mass vaccination centers at sports stadiums and museums have reopened after research showed that two doses of the vaccine werenât enough to protect against omicron.
Across the U.K., almost 58% of people ages 12 and over has received booster shots, including 325,087 who received a third dose on Tuesday, according to the latest government data.
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