NC COVID-19 hospitalizations on the rise, highest since March

On Wednesday data showed COVID-19 cases are up in North Carolina, but not dramatically.

The state Department of Health and Human Services updates COVID-19 data each week, monitoring hospitalizations and wastewater.

WRAL Data Trackers found current hospitalizations are close to where they were in January of this year but far below the pre-vaccine levels. In the last week, 485 hospital admissions in the state were for COVID-19, compared to 435 the previous week.

Wednesday's data showed COVID-19 hospitalizations up 12% since last week and the most we've seen since the week of March 11.

Flu-related hospitalizations were down this week to 8 from 14.

N.C. data also shows wastewater virus particles are up 9% since last week and the highest since January of this year.

According to WRAL Data Trackers, the rate of hospitalizations is still nearly 3.5 times lower than the most recent spike in hospitalizations we saw in January 2023, when over 1,600 hospital admissions were positive for COVID-19.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said a new COVID-19 booster should be ready next month to target the new variants and hopefully help better protect against the virus.

Experts say, if you're in a high-risk group, it's not a bad idea to dust off your masks and start wearing one again, especially if you're indoors with crowds.

The most effective type of mask is still the N-95 version.

All people age 6 months and older are also encouraged to receive a flu vaccine, and eligible individuals should receive an RSV vaccine. RSV vaccines are approved for individuals age 60 or older, and medication is approved to prevent RSV in infants and toddlers. Parents of infants and people age 60 years or older should talk to their medical provider for more information on RSV prevention. Flu shot locations can be found online here.

As of May 2023, doctors and labs are no longer required to report COVID-19 cases to the state health department. As a result, case counts are no longer reported by the NC Department of Health Human Services and are unavailable to report on our previous data dashboard.