America has passed another grim Covid-19 milestone, as data shows that one in 500 people living in the US have died from the virus since the pandemic began.

Almost 664,000 people had died of the virus in the US by Tuesday evening, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, following a surge of cases and hospitalizations, particularly in southern states, caused by a combination of the Delta variant and low vaccination rates.

About one in four US hospitals have intensive care units that are at least 95 percent full, according to the New York Times.

Christina Salazar, a registered nurse in an Orlando, Florida, hospital where patients have been stalled in the emergency room, was recently diagnosed with compassion fatigue. The mental health problem occurs when providers take on the stress or trauma of their patients.

She is not alone at AdventHealth Altamonte Springs hospital, which until recently did not have enough inpatient beds and canceled non-emergency surgeries because of a surge in Covid-19 cases. She said many of her colleagues […]