Hospitals in some parts of the country are now treating more coronavirus patients than at the peak of the first wave.
The Nightingale Hospital for the North West is now reopening as the health service once again struggles to cope with a flood of Covid-19 patients.
Hospitals in Liverpool, Lancashire, Nottingham and other areas are now treating more Covid patients than at the peak in April, the NHS in England said.
A Birmingham-based hospital trust said some procedures and non in-patient activity will have to be postponed to manage "large numbers of very sick patients" across its three main sites.
Greater Manchester hospitals are also cancelling operations as patient numbers reach levels not seen since April.
Wigan and Stockport have become the first hospital systems in Greater Manchester to suspend procedures, the Manchester Evening News reports.
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust said cancelling any procedure was regrettable but necessary in response to "the sustained and growing pressures on our hospitals".
It added patients with "urgent clinical needs and cancer" were being prioritised.
There are currently 294 patients with Covid-19 - including 34 in ITUs - across its three main hospitals: Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield and Birmingham Heartlands Hospital.
The number of patients with Covid-19 at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust has jumped 27% in five days.
The trust, which is one of the largest in England, said in a statement: "In response to the sustained and growing pressures on our hospitals, our teams constantly review capacity throughout the day.
"The number of beds we have available is impacted by emergency and trauma admissions, enhanced infection prevention and control measures in response to Covid, and staff absences (such as those who are shielding, self-isolating, sick or on leave).
"The way this is managed is complex and requires necessary flexibility across all areas of our trust.
"While we are working to maintain our elective programme as far as possible for patients with urgent clinical needs and cancer, some procedures and non in-patient activity will have to be postponed so that we can safely manage the large numbers of very sick patients.
"We regret that any procedure has to be cancelled and acknowledge the distress this can cause. We can only apologise to those affected."
Meanwhile Professor Stephen Powis, national medical director for the NHS in England, said Covid-19 cases and hospitalisations are rising sharply.
He added that hospitals in Liverpool, Lancashire and Nottingham hospitals are now treating more Covid patients than at the peak of the pandemic in April.
An spokeswoman for the NHS in the North West said the temporary Nightingale hospital at the Manchester Central conference centre will reopen today.
She said: "The NHS Nightingale Hospital North West will accept patients from today to provide care for those who do not have Covid-19, but do need further support before they are able to go home, such as therapy and social care assessments."
The facility was first opened in April and was able to care for 750 patients from across the North West at full capacity.
Earlier this month, Nightingale hospitals in Manchester, Sunderland and Harrogate were asked to "mobilise" and prepare for patients as areas in the north of England saw infection rates rise.
Figures show, as of October 26, North West hospitals had 2,407 patients with coronavirus.
The number is the highest since April 23 and not far below the figure of 2,890 from the peak of the first wave on April 13.
Dr Jane Eddleston, medical director of the Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, said: "The Nightingale will not be used as a critical care facility and neither was it in the first phase. It will be used as a facility for patients to have additional rehabilitation."
