Many children hospitalized with COVID-19 have other health conditions that make them more susceptible to complications from the virus.
Health
Hospitalizations set record in Maine as omicron creates new hot spots for infections
The variant has spread first in coastal and more populous counties, driving up infection rates where they had been relatively low just three weeks ago, and experts predict cases soon will spike in every county.
Omicron surge vexes Maine parents of children too young for vaccine
Heather Cimellaro of Auburn says omicron has her rethinking running errands with her 3-year-old twins, library storytime visits and preschool.
Maine schools face ‘unfathomable challenges’ as omicron spreads
The Maine Department of Education reported Thursday that 4,946 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in school populations in the last 30 days.
Central Maine Medical Center can continue to receive nonneurosurgical trauma patients, EMS board votes
The board voted Wednesday 15-1 to continue patient transfers from area hospitals to the Lewiston hospital except those with neurosurgical trauma.
Finding a COVID test is still a challenge for most Mainers
Appointments at local pharmacies are often booked for a week out and the supply of at-home rapid antigen tests is inconsistent.
U.S. hospitals experience a different kind of COVID-19 surge this time
The omicron variant infects more people, so hospitals must cope with more patients and more health-care workers who test positive, but patients aren’t as sick as with previous variants.
Why are so many vaccinated people getting COVID-19 lately?
A couple of factors are at play, starting with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant.
Maine hospitals report spike in staff absences caused by COVID-19
MaineHealth and Northern Light Health are urging Mainers to get vaccinated to ease the burden on health care workers caused by the surge likely being fueled by the omicron variant.
With omicron, hospital patient numbers may be more important than case counts
With the true number of infections probably much higher than the case count, ‘Hospitalizations are where the rubber meets the road,’ says a public health professor.