Florida has 13% of its facilities reporting a shortage of medical personnel, up from 4% a week earlier, according to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services data. The one-week jump of about 9 percentage points was the most in the country, the data show.

Although Florida has the worst momentum, 14 states — including Alabama, Louisiana and Oklahoma — are reporting more critical staffing shortages as a percentage of total facilities. Some of that may reflect structural differences unrelated to Covid-19.

Florida accounts for nearly 20% of U.S. Covid-19 cases reported in the past week, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show.

The fast-spreading delta variant, now dominant in the U.S., is putting hospital systems on their heels.