The number of people in the United States hospitalized with the coronavirus has surpassed the record set last winter, according to The New York Times. As of Sunday, 142,388 patients with COVID-19 were staying in hospitals across the country, data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services showed. Last year, a peak in hospitalizations was reached on Jan. 14, with 142,315 hospitalizations. The recent surge in new cases—at an average of 680,000 per day, shooting well past last winter’s record height—can be attributed to the extraordinarily contagious Omicron variant of the virus. Medical personnel are at a breaking point in many states, with a quarter of U.S. hospitals dogged by critical staffing shortages. “Even the most dedicated individuals are going to be tired and worn out, if not burned out and dealing with mental health issues as a consequence,” said Dr. Mahshid Abir, a University of Michigan emergency physician and RAND Corporation researcher. Experts have continued to insist the best protection against developing severe symptoms in connection to the virus is vaccination—receiving both initial and booster shots.