Vermont shatters previous record of COVID-19 hospitalizations

Vermont shattered its previous COVID-19 hospitalization record on Tuesday, according to data from the state's health department.

Vermont has 84 COVID-19 hospitalizations, beating its previous record on Nov. 23 of almost 70 COVID-19 hospitalizations, VTDigger reported.

The increase in hospitalizations comes as Vermont is struggling with staffing shortages. Some medical procedures that are considered nonessential have been postponed to make room for COVID-19 patients.

During a press conference Tuesday, officials said a majority of those in the hospital are unvaccinated, according to the local outlet.

Multiple states have seen an increase in COVID-19 cases, with the federal government sending military personnel to Michigan to help with the state's coronavirus hospitalizations.

The increase comes as worry spreads across the country over the new omicron variant, which was first discovered in South Africa.

Scientists are still looking to determine how transmissible the new variant is and the how effective the coronavirus vaccines will be against it.

The U.S. has already banned travel from several southern African countries in an attempt to mitigate the variant from arriving in the U.S.

"On Thursday, I'll be putting forward a detailed strategy outlining how we're going to fight COVID this winter, not with shutdowns or lockdowns but with more widespread vaccinations, boosters, testing and more," President Biden said.