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WORCESTER — In the bay outside the crowded emergency department of UMass Memorial Medical Center, the ambulances keep coming.

Just inside the doors, a pair of paramedics wait with their patient, an elderly woman on a stretcher.

Nov 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines for all adults six months after having been fully vaccinated with the shots from either Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) and partner BioNTech SE or Moderna Inc (MRNA.O).

RUTLAND, Mass. - COVID-19 vaccination eligibility is expanding in Massachusetts. Anyone 18 and older can now receive a booster shot. Meanwhile, younger kids are getting their first doses of the vaccine. 

Nine-year old Isaac Tsai is getting his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. “It means I’ll be more safe from the coronavirus," Issac, who received the Pfizer vaccine, said. 

Dr. Eric Dickson, CEO of UMass Memorial Health in Worcester, on the rise in Covid cases and hospitalizations.

Massachusetts hospitals continue to face bed space issues this fall as a worrisome winter looms, the head of the state hospital association said Friday.

“Capacity remains a serious challenge within hospitals and ICUs across Massachusetts, and they are each preparing for what will likely be yet another difficult winter,” said Steve Walsh, president and chief executive of the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association.

Picture this: You're critically ill, perhaps dying, and your nearby hospital doesn't have any open beds in its intensive care unit.

You're taken to the sky in a medical helicopter, as paramedics and dispatchers search for an available ICU bed on the ground – in a health care system stressed by staffing shortages and hammered by COVID-19.

Dr. Robert Klugman, medical director of employee health at UMass Memorial Health in Worcester, on the vaccine mandate for their employees (1:02:19)

In her victory speech after cruising to a landslide win in the Boston mayor’s race, Michelle Wu spoke of the urgency of “bold” change to “meet the moment” the city is facing, a theme she sounded throughout her campaign. But she also talked about the importance of basic city services, saying her administration can pay attention to both. 

Capacity challenges and workforce issues have created unprecedented strain on the state's hospitals.