Jan. 4 saw the highest number ever of Colorado COVID hospital admissions

Registered nurse Rachel Chamberlin, of Cornish, N.H., right, steps out of an isolation room where where Fred Rutherford, of Claremont, N.H., left, recovers from COVID-19 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, in Lebanon, N.H., Monday, Jan. 3, 2022. Hospitals like this medical center, the largest in New Hampshire, are overflowing with severely ill, unvaccinated COVID-19 patients from northern New England. If he returns home, Rutherford said, he promises to get vaccinated and tell others to do so, too. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

by: DJ Summers

Posted: Jan 5, 2022 / 04:18 PM MST

Updated: Jan 5, 2022 / 06:39 PM MST

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DENVER (KDVR) — The new year is breaking more COVID records by the day.

The fast-spreading omicron variant has milder symptoms than earlier variants, but the number of infections being seen still threatens to overwhelm hospitals through sheer volume.

421 Coloradans were admitted to the hospital with COVID on Jan. 4, the highest-ever number of daily COVID hospital intake. Previously, hospital admissions had peaked in December 2020 when several days saw between 300 and 350 people enter hospitals with the virus.

The daily average number of admitted patients with COVID is now at its highest point since December 2020. Colorado hospitals admit an average of 250 patients a day.

The total patient count in hospitals has not risen as dramatically as the number of people admitted, but it is rising quickly.

There are a total of 1,384 patients with COVID as of Jan. 5, up from 1,055 on Dec. 26.

This has not yet reached the peak number of patients in November, but if the current rate continues it would reach November’s peak in a week to 10 days.