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Texas Hospital Records 1st Case Of South American Lambda COVID-19 Variant

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Houston Methodist Hospital's ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Courtesy of Houston Methodist Hospital)
Houston Methodist Hospital's ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Courtesy of Houston Methodist Hospital)

As cases of COVID-19 climb around the country — up nearly 200% in the last two weeks — hospitals are filling as well. Dr. Thomas Dobbs, Mississippi's state health officer, tweeted this week that the "4th wave is here."

At Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, 184 COVID-19 patients have been admitted, up 50% from July 1. Most of them are unvaccinated and infected with the infectious Delta variant of the disease.

But hospital physician and CEO Marc Boom says at least one hospitalization is a patient infected with the Lambda variant, a strain of coronavirus that started in Peru and is now rampant in parts of South America.

Boom joins host Robin Young to talk about the situation at his hospital.

This segment aired on July 21, 2021.

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