Hospitals Seek Relaxed Rules For Nursing, Patient Discharge Monday, January 11, 2021 | Sacramento, CA
Registered nurse Merri Lynn Anderson tends to a patient in a COVID-19 unit at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, Jan. 7, 2021.
Photo by Jae C. Hong, AP Photo
Facing the largest “surge on top of a surge” of patients since the start of the pandemic, California hospitals today begged state officials for more relief from the “red tape” they say is hampering patient care.
“We find we are standing on a beach and watching a tsunami approach,” said Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association, an industry group. “Yet we are still having to deal with regulations that … that in times of crisis need to be set aside. We need additional flexibility so (hospitals) can focus on patient care and not on paperwork.”