Twenty-one Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Northern California are suspending elective, non-urgent procedures through Jan. 4 as they continue to face a surge in COVID-19 hospitalizations, according to The Mercury News.
The Oakland, Calif.-based system announced the suspension Dec. 26, days after Chairman and CEO Greg Adams said during a news conference, "We simply will not be able to keep up if the COVID surge continues to increase. We're at or near capacity everywhere."
California reported a record-high 20,059 current COVID-19 hospitalizations Dec. 27, a 13 percent increase from one week prior, according to The COVID Tracking Project.
Find a running list of other health systems that have adjusted their elective surgery timelines, organized by state, here.