Nearly 300% more Covid patients in US hospitals at weekend than a year ago

Average number of deaths was over 86% higher than same period last year as Delta variant continues to spread

The number of Covid-19 patients in hospitals across the US this Labor Day weekend was nearly 300% higher than this time last year, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The average number of deaths was over 86% higher than the same period last year.

The surge in patients comes as the highly contagious Delta variant continues to spread across the US, and coincided with a weekend that saw a spike in travel. According to the Transportation Security Administration, more than 3.5 million people travelled across the country on Friday and Saturday for the Labor Day holiday, despite the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendation for unvaccinated people to refrain from traveling.