The Omicron variant of the coronavirus has a reputation for causing mild illness, yet it\u2019s fueling a staggering rise in hospitalizations across the country. \n\nIn some of the early hot spots for the variant, emergency rooms are filling up, hospitals are being flooded with new patients and there aren\u2019t enough staff to care for all of them. \n\nWe explore why the Omicron surge is leading to hospitalizations and hear from doctors about what they are seeing, and why this surge feels different from the ones that came before.