FILE - Doctor tends to a patient in a hallway due to COVID-19 surge at the Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital on Aug. 18, 2021 in Houston, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)RELATED: Kroger plans to give 1 million COVID booster shots per week: reportThe U.S.
is in the grip of a fourth wave of infection this summer, powered by the highly contagious delta variant, which has sent cases, hospitalizations and deaths soaring again, swamped medical centers, burned out nurses and erased months of progress against the virus.Deaths are running at over 1,100 a day on average, turning the clock back to mid-March.