More than 2,500 people are in Pa. hospitals due to COVID-19. That’s 10 times higher than in July.

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More than 2,500 people are now being treated in Pennsylvania hospitals for COVID-19, the state Department of Health said Wednesday.

Statewide, 2,518 people are hospitalized, an increase of 97 over the previous day, according to the health department’s online database. The department indicated 613 people are being treated in intensive care units.

About 250 people were treated in hospitals in July, so the number of hospitalizations has increased by 10 times since then. The number of hospitalizations remains well below the peak of 6,300 in December, but health officials have been increasingly concerned about the rising number of cases requiring hospital care.

Most of those in hospitals have not been fully vaccinated, state health officials said. From January through early September, only 5% of those hospitalized with COVID-19 have been fully vaccinated.

Health officials have said the highly potent delta variant has led to more serious illness.

At a news conference with state health officials Tuesday, Dr. Karen Krok of Penn State Health said about 30% of the COVID-19 patients in the system’s hospitals are in ICU beds. Earlier in the pandemic, only about 10%-15% of those hospitalized had to go to the ICU, she said.

The health department reported an additional 4,394 cases Wednesday, as the number of new daily cases has topped 4,000 (and 5,000) in recent days. Earlier this summer, the state was registering less than 200 new cases per day at one point. Since the pandemic began, the state has recorded 1,392,266 COVID-19 cases.

The state also reported 66 new deaths tied to the coronavirus Wednesday. The health department has reported a total of 28,998 deaths tied to COVID-19. About half of those deaths have occurred in long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes.

Statewide, 67.9% of Pennsylvania’s adults are fully vaccinated, according to the health department. Doctors continue to stress the COVID-19 vaccines offer the best protection against serious illness and death.

On Tuesday, Acting Pennsylvania Health Secretary Alison Beam signed an order aimed at ensuring access to COVID-19 booster shots when they are approved by federal regulators. The order requires providers to offer online scheduling, a phone number so callers can reach a live person and walk-in appointments when possible.

The federal government is expected to sign off on the Pfizer COVID-19 booster shot in the next several days. The approval is expected to be limited to those 65 and over and those at high risk of serious illness.

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