Published January 06. 2021 10:16AM
Brian Melley, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES Hospitals in California are so swamped by the coronavirus pandemic that the state has ordered those with room to accept patients from others that are out of intensive care beds.
The public health order issued Tuesday night could result in patients being shipped to Northern California from Southern California and the agricultural San Joaquin Valley, where 14 counties were immediately ordered to delay nonessential “and non-life threatening” surgeries in order to provide beds. The order, which will last at least three weeks, also applies to any county where ICU capacity to treat COVID-19 patients is bottoming out.
Some hospitals have had to close their doors at times because they’ve become so overwhelmed, leaving ambulances waiting up to eight hours and diverting others to different emergency rooms.
California orders surgery delays as virus patients swamp hospitals
By Brian Melley article
An ambulance of the LAFD Station No9 rides at Skid Row on April 12, 2020 in downtown Los Angeles, California. - One of the busiest fire station in the country , LA Fire Station 9 is on the front lines of California s homeless crisis e Coronavirus pan
Expand
LOS ANGELES - Hospitals in California are so swamped by the coronavirus pandemic that the state has ordered those with room to accept patients from others that are out of intensive care beds.
The public health order issued Tuesday night could result in patients being shipped to Northern California from Southern California and the agricultural San Joaquin Valley, where 14 counties were immediately ordered to delay nonessential and non-life-threatening surgeries in order to provide beds. The order, which will last at least three weeks, also applies to any county where ICU capacity to treat COVID-19 patients is bottoming out.