As COVID-19 cases wane, Maryland hospitals still ‘trying to catch up’

The surge of the omicron variant of COVID-19, which peaked in January in Maryland, was possibly the most challenging part of the pandemic to date for hospitals, many of which were full nearly to capacity. But even though the surge is now essentially over, with coronavirus hospitalizations dipping to only 391 statewide, a fraction of what they were in January, hospital officials say they are still struggling. Some hospitals paused or reduced non-urgent surgeries during the worst of the surge and are now seeing influxes of patients with non-COVID-19 needs.