Quote: @BigAl99 said:
@ AGRforever said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
@ purplefaithful said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
I say BS whenever Biden says he is doing everything he can to slow down covid. He never mentions the border, ever... Surprised we don't hear more left leaning folks voicing concerns over the open covid door at the border. Guess they really don't care...
Not sure where the border fits in the grand scheme of things regarding Covid control? Probably not high, but I'm not surprised to see it brought up by our more conservative purple fans.
(snip)
Let's see, if I wanted to spread a disease with a world wide incidence rate, I would allow easy border entry to untested people from many different countries and send them to locations across the US. No testing, no quarantine, just let them move freely as they please. Great way to spread infections and ensure any new variants are introduced throughout the US! Perfect! What was the number, 1 infected person will on average infect 7 others? Seems to be a very large hole that needs to be plugged if one is serious about preventing covid spread.
What is the covid infection rate of people crossing the border? Do we know? No, they are not routinely tested. Should we care? Damn right we should! With all the snark from Team Blue against unvaccinated people, one would think they would see the potential for transmission from unvaccinated, untested border crossers. And follow up their concern by demanding that the administration immediately set up a program to reduce/eliminate this potential source of spread. It would have to involve dramatically reducing border entries, testing, forced quarantine for the positives, follow-up testing for the negatives over a period of time.
To head off snark, yes, I am fully vaccinated and believe everyone should be vaccinated.
I’m in favor of everything you said there.
On illegals, I’m not sure you can stop them and if you cant stop them you cant test them. But past that, youre damn right we should be testing at the boarders.
If it's illegals, how do we get them from going to places like Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Wyoming, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma..... or perhaps there just may be another reason why these States have the highest rates per capita adjusted for population, average per 100k , unless they are really secret sanctuary states that are hiding the humans you are trying to blame it on.
Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?
Here's the most recent weekly transmission rates from the CDC by County in the US....color coded for your viewing pleasure. Despite sometimes draconian mask mandates and higher vaccination rates in some counties....it's tough to see a big divide in the rate of transmission between the counties/states as you suggest. Some rural pockets are doing better but otherwise they're mostly in the same boat.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
We're back under a mandatory mask mandate in Dane County, WI (Madison) for at least another month. I have friends that work in the ICUs of two of the 4 major hospitals here...and the ICUs are only running about 25% capacity at present. The County has the highest percentage vaccinated in the State (because of the large number of healthcare facilities). The most recent uptick in Covid cases in the US has been leveled here for the past 3 weeks. If the vaccination works...and we're not even close to putting a burden on the ICUs...than why are we the only County in the State with a mask mandate? It quit being about science a long time ago...it's now about politics and control...and we do love our liberal politics here...
Quote: @badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ AGRforever said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
@ purplefaithful said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
I say BS whenever Biden says he is doing everything he can to slow down covid. He never mentions the border, ever... Surprised we don't hear more left leaning folks voicing concerns over the open covid door at the border. Guess they really don't care...
Not sure where the border fits in the grand scheme of things regarding Covid control? Probably not high, but I'm not surprised to see it brought up by our more conservative purple fans.
(snip)
Let's see, if I wanted to spread a disease with a world wide incidence rate, I would allow easy border entry to untested people from many different countries and send them to locations across the US. No testing, no quarantine, just let them move freely as they please. Great way to spread infections and ensure any new variants are introduced throughout the US! Perfect! What was the number, 1 infected person will on average infect 7 others? Seems to be a very large hole that needs to be plugged if one is serious about preventing covid spread.
What is the covid infection rate of people crossing the border? Do we know? No, they are not routinely tested. Should we care? Damn right we should! With all the snark from Team Blue against unvaccinated people, one would think they would see the potential for transmission from unvaccinated, untested border crossers. And follow up their concern by demanding that the administration immediately set up a program to reduce/eliminate this potential source of spread. It would have to involve dramatically reducing border entries, testing, forced quarantine for the positives, follow-up testing for the negatives over a period of time.
To head off snark, yes, I am fully vaccinated and believe everyone should be vaccinated.
I’m in favor of everything you said there.
On illegals, I’m not sure you can stop them and if you cant stop them you cant test them. But past that, youre damn right we should be testing at the boarders.
If it's illegals, how do we get them from going to places like Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Wyoming, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma..... or perhaps there just may be another reason why these States have the highest rates per capita adjusted for population, average per 100k , unless they are really secret sanctuary states that are hiding the humans you are trying to blame it on.
Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?
Here's the most recent weekly transmission rates from the CDC by County in the US....color coded for your viewing pleasure. Despite sometimes draconian mask mandates and higher vaccination rates in some counties....it's tough to see a big divide in the rate of transmission between the counties/states as you suggest. Some rural pockets are doing better but otherwise they're mostly in the same boat.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
We're back under a mandatory mask mandate in Dane County, WI (Madison) for at least another month. I have friends that work in the ICUs of two of the 4 major hospitals here...and the ICUs are only running about 25% capacity at present. The County has the highest percentage vaccinated in the State (because of the large number of healthcare facilities). The most recent uptick in Covid cases in the US has been leveled here for the past 3 weeks. If the vaccination works...and we're not even close to putting a burden on the ICUs...than why are we the only County in the State with a mask mandate? It quit being about science a long time ago...it's now about politics and control...and we do love our liberal politics here...
Used Johns Hopkins Data presented using GIS , for the seven day rolling average. Didn't go by county, chose to look at the macro state information, rather than trying to infer relevance from micro data distributions. And I have better friends than yours, that totally say your assertion is only supported by anecdotal data. So what your saying is that public health practice should controlled by any possible outlier situation You, BadgerVike choose to look at that supports your agenda. Wonder what kind of scientist you claim to be, is it by title or degree?
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/...7b48e9ecf6
Quote: @BigAl99 said:
@ badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ AGRforever said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
@ purplefaithful said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
I say BS whenever Biden says he is doing everything he can to slow down covid. He never mentions the border, ever... Surprised we don't hear more left leaning folks voicing concerns over the open covid door at the border. Guess they really don't care...
Not sure where the border fits in the grand scheme of things regarding Covid control? Probably not high, but I'm not surprised to see it brought up by our more conservative purple fans.
(snip)
Let's see, if I wanted to spread a disease with a world wide incidence rate, I would allow easy border entry to untested people from many different countries and send them to locations across the US. No testing, no quarantine, just let them move freely as they please. Great way to spread infections and ensure any new variants are introduced throughout the US! Perfect! What was the number, 1 infected person will on average infect 7 others? Seems to be a very large hole that needs to be plugged if one is serious about preventing covid spread.
What is the covid infection rate of people crossing the border? Do we know? No, they are not routinely tested. Should we care? Damn right we should! With all the snark from Team Blue against unvaccinated people, one would think they would see the potential for transmission from unvaccinated, untested border crossers. And follow up their concern by demanding that the administration immediately set up a program to reduce/eliminate this potential source of spread. It would have to involve dramatically reducing border entries, testing, forced quarantine for the positives, follow-up testing for the negatives over a period of time.
To head off snark, yes, I am fully vaccinated and believe everyone should be vaccinated.
I’m in favor of everything you said there.
On illegals, I’m not sure you can stop them and if you cant stop them you cant test them. But past that, youre damn right we should be testing at the boarders.
If it's illegals, how do we get them from going to places like Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Wyoming, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma..... or perhaps there just may be another reason why these States have the highest rates per capita adjusted for population, average per 100k , unless they are really secret sanctuary states that are hiding the humans you are trying to blame it on.
Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?
Here's the most recent weekly transmission rates from the CDC by County in the US....color coded for your viewing pleasure. Despite sometimes draconian mask mandates and higher vaccination rates in some counties....it's tough to see a big divide in the rate of transmission between the counties/states as you suggest. Some rural pockets are doing better but otherwise they're mostly in the same boat.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
We're back under a mandatory mask mandate in Dane County, WI (Madison) for at least another month. I have friends that work in the ICUs of two of the 4 major hospitals here...and the ICUs are only running about 25% capacity at present. The County has the highest percentage vaccinated in the State (because of the large number of healthcare facilities). The most recent uptick in Covid cases in the US has been leveled here for the past 3 weeks. If the vaccination works...and we're not even close to putting a burden on the ICUs...than why are we the only County in the State with a mask mandate? It quit being about science a long time ago...it's now about politics and control...and we do love our liberal politics here...
Used Johns Hopkins Data presented using GIS , for the seven day rolling average. Didn't go by county, chose to look at the macro state information, rather than trying to infer relevance from micro data distributions. And I have better friends than yours, that totally say your assertion is only supported by anecdotal data. So what your saying is that public health practice should controlled by any possible outlier situation You, BadgerVike choose to look at that supports your agenda. Wonder what kind of scientist you claim to be, is it by title or degree?
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/...7b48e9ecf6
I took the data off the CDC website....you think that's cherry picking data to fit an agenda? Too funny.
Back to the original OP, the mandate isn't for all Federal Employees...it's for employees in the Executive Branch....Congress and their aides are exempt as is the USPS as pointed out above. If a mandate is so important, why make exceptions? Also, as pointed out above...illegal immigrants are not required to be vaccinated as a condition of staying in the US awaiting their applications for entry. Are you telling me that we can't tell these people that they will be returned to their home countries or Mexico unless they're vaccinated? I have to be vaccinated to travel abroad...and people entering the country legally are required to provide proof of vaccination and a negative Covid test...but those entering this country illegally are getting a free pass? The Covid rate among those entering illegally has been in the 20% range. Why do we have different rules and exemptions if this is so important?
I'm not sure it matters...this will be yet another EO that gets tossed out by the Supreme Court based on constitutionality.....and unfortunately the effort will only further polarize the vaxxers and anti-vaxxers. Seems pretty counterproductive to me.
Quote: @badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ AGRforever said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
@ purplefaithful said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
I say BS whenever Biden says he is doing everything he can to slow down covid. He never mentions the border, ever... Surprised we don't hear more left leaning folks voicing concerns over the open covid door at the border. Guess they really don't care...
Not sure where the border fits in the grand scheme of things regarding Covid control? Probably not high, but I'm not surprised to see it brought up by our more conservative purple fans.
(snip)
Let's see, if I wanted to spread a disease with a world wide incidence rate, I would allow easy border entry to untested people from many different countries and send them to locations across the US. No testing, no quarantine, just let them move freely as they please. Great way to spread infections and ensure any new variants are introduced throughout the US! Perfect! What was the number, 1 infected person will on average infect 7 others? Seems to be a very large hole that needs to be plugged if one is serious about preventing covid spread.
What is the covid infection rate of people crossing the border? Do we know? No, they are not routinely tested. Should we care? Damn right we should! With all the snark from Team Blue against unvaccinated people, one would think they would see the potential for transmission from unvaccinated, untested border crossers. And follow up their concern by demanding that the administration immediately set up a program to reduce/eliminate this potential source of spread. It would have to involve dramatically reducing border entries, testing, forced quarantine for the positives, follow-up testing for the negatives over a period of time.
To head off snark, yes, I am fully vaccinated and believe everyone should be vaccinated.
I’m in favor of everything you said there.
On illegals, I’m not sure you can stop them and if you cant stop them you cant test them. But past that, youre damn right we should be testing at the boarders.
If it's illegals, how do we get them from going to places like Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Wyoming, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma..... or perhaps there just may be another reason why these States have the highest rates per capita adjusted for population, average per 100k , unless they are really secret sanctuary states that are hiding the humans you are trying to blame it on.
Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?
Here's the most recent weekly transmission rates from the CDC by County in the US....color coded for your viewing pleasure. Despite sometimes draconian mask mandates and higher vaccination rates in some counties....it's tough to see a big divide in the rate of transmission between the counties/states as you suggest. Some rural pockets are doing better but otherwise they're mostly in the same boat.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
We're back under a mandatory mask mandate in Dane County, WI (Madison) for at least another month. I have friends that work in the ICUs of two of the 4 major hospitals here...and the ICUs are only running about 25% capacity at present. The County has the highest percentage vaccinated in the State (because of the large number of healthcare facilities). The most recent uptick in Covid cases in the US has been leveled here for the past 3 weeks. If the vaccination works...and we're not even close to putting a burden on the ICUs...than why are we the only County in the State with a mask mandate? It quit being about science a long time ago...it's now about politics and control...and we do love our liberal politics here...
Used Johns Hopkins Data presented using GIS , for the seven day rolling average. Didn't go by county, chose to look at the macro state information, rather than trying to infer relevance from micro data distributions. And I have better friends than yours, that totally say your assertion is only supported by anecdotal data. So what your saying is that public health practice should controlled by any possible outlier situation You, BadgerVike choose to look at that supports your agenda. Wonder what kind of scientist you claim to be, is it by title or degree?
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/...7b48e9ecf6
I took the data off the CDC website....you think that's cherry picking data to fit an agenda? Too funny.
Back to the original OP, the mandate isn't for all Federal Employees...it's for employees in the Executive Branch....Congress and their aides are exempt as is the USPS as pointed out above. If a mandate is so important, why make exceptions? Also, as pointed out above...illegal immigrants are not required to be vaccinated as a condition of staying in the US awaiting their applications for entry. Are you telling me that we can't tell these people that they will be returned to their home countries or Mexico unless they're vaccinated? I have to be vaccinated to travel abroad...and people entering the country legally are required to provide proof of vaccination and a negative Covid test...but those entering this country illegally are getting a free pass? The Covid rate among those entering illegally has been in the 20% range. Why do we have different rules and exemptions if this is so important?
I'm not sure it matters...this will be yet another EO that gets tossed out by the Supreme Court based on constitutionality.....and unfortunately the effort will only further polarize the vaxxers and anti-vaxxers. Seems pretty counterproductive to me.
i would guess it was thrown out there to take peoples attention off of something else biden and company have fucked up.
Oh...and one more thing. Lots of articles and studies on the immunity from having had Covid vs the vaccines but all agree you have sustained immunity from both. How come you can't get an antibody test and receive a certificate of immunity based on a previous infection? Doesn't seem...well...scientific.
https://www.science.org/content/article/...ains-vital
Quote: @badgervike said:
Oh...and one more thing. Lots of articles and studies on the immunity from having had Covid vs the vaccines but all agree you have sustained immunity from both. How come you can't get an antibody test and receive a certificate of immunity based on a previous infection? Doesn't seem...well...scientific.
https://www.science.org/content/article/...ains-vital
Because that type of testing is not done in the US, I am in Lower Saxony right now and travel throughout the EU recognizes this, and requires testing or vaccine passport prior participating in free movement. In the US there has been much fearmongering and disasterbaiting about establishing mandatory antibody screening requirements. Totally agree it doesn't seem scientific to ban that type of information being used to open activities. My state Iowa, blocked my personal access to my personal information in the the Immunization Registry Information System as soon as the vaccine was made available, and promoted HIPA rights about knowledge of past infection, right out of the ALEC policy guidelines.
But count me in big time, if we can use scientific verification for immunity I am all for it. I think Israel, from your reference link, was the first to use Vaccine Passports, mandatory testing and correct me if wrong, is also has one of the highest vaccinated populations.
Didn't say you were cherry picking, but if you think so, I'll agree. I was responding to your question, and citing the source:
"Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking
points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?"
And explained that I was using state data, in the list of states that had referenced as the highest rolling average of cases, not breaking it down to a county level. I thought that was your obtuse reference for the Dane County success in the ICU and still using the mask mandate. I can only give you my opinion and anecdote of why I have it. In a plant I was starting up safety glasses were only required in certain production areas and travel (material handling, breaks, office ...) required close proximity to these areas, we had use a one size fits all in production areas, steel toes and Buddy Hollie BC glasses for all.
So what is your affiliation with science you seem to never answer that, and I have heard you claim eminent status here and there on multiple occasions.
Quote: @JimmyinSD said:
@ badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ badgervike said:
@ BigAl99 said:
@ AGRforever said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
@ purplefaithful said:
@ IDVikingfan said:
I say BS whenever Biden says he is doing everything he can to slow down covid. He never mentions the border, ever... Surprised we don't hear more left leaning folks voicing concerns over the open covid door at the border. Guess they really don't care...
Not sure where the border fits in the grand scheme of things regarding Covid control? Probably not high, but I'm not surprised to see it brought up by our more conservative purple fans.
(snip)
Let's see, if I wanted to spread a disease with a world wide incidence rate, I would allow easy border entry to untested people from many different countries and send them to locations across the US. No testing, no quarantine, just let them move freely as they please. Great way to spread infections and ensure any new variants are introduced throughout the US! Perfect! What was the number, 1 infected person will on average infect 7 others? Seems to be a very large hole that needs to be plugged if one is serious about preventing covid spread.
What is the covid infection rate of people crossing the border? Do we know? No, they are not routinely tested. Should we care? Damn right we should! With all the snark from Team Blue against unvaccinated people, one would think they would see the potential for transmission from unvaccinated, untested border crossers. And follow up their concern by demanding that the administration immediately set up a program to reduce/eliminate this potential source of spread. It would have to involve dramatically reducing border entries, testing, forced quarantine for the positives, follow-up testing for the negatives over a period of time.
To head off snark, yes, I am fully vaccinated and believe everyone should be vaccinated.
I’m in favor of everything you said there.
On illegals, I’m not sure you can stop them and if you cant stop them you cant test them. But past that, youre damn right we should be testing at the boarders.
If it's illegals, how do we get them from going to places like Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, West Virginia, Alaska, Wyoming, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Oklahoma..... or perhaps there just may be another reason why these States have the highest rates per capita adjusted for population, average per 100k , unless they are really secret sanctuary states that are hiding the humans you are trying to blame it on.
Do you actually look up any of this stuff before you post the talking points from ConservativesAREevil.com or wherever you go for news?
Here's the most recent weekly transmission rates from the CDC by County in the US....color coded for your viewing pleasure. Despite sometimes draconian mask mandates and higher vaccination rates in some counties....it's tough to see a big divide in the rate of transmission between the counties/states as you suggest. Some rural pockets are doing better but otherwise they're mostly in the same boat.
https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view
We're back under a mandatory mask mandate in Dane County, WI (Madison) for at least another month. I have friends that work in the ICUs of two of the 4 major hospitals here...and the ICUs are only running about 25% capacity at present. The County has the highest percentage vaccinated in the State (because of the large number of healthcare facilities). The most recent uptick in Covid cases in the US has been leveled here for the past 3 weeks. If the vaccination works...and we're not even close to putting a burden on the ICUs...than why are we the only County in the State with a mask mandate? It quit being about science a long time ago...it's now about politics and control...and we do love our liberal politics here...
Used Johns Hopkins Data presented using GIS , for the seven day rolling average. Didn't go by county, chose to look at the macro state information, rather than trying to infer relevance from micro data distributions. And I have better friends than yours, that totally say your assertion is only supported by anecdotal data. So what your saying is that public health practice should controlled by any possible outlier situation You, BadgerVike choose to look at that supports your agenda. Wonder what kind of scientist you claim to be, is it by title or degree?
https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/...7b48e9ecf6
I took the data off the CDC website....you think that's cherry picking data to fit an agenda? Too funny.
Back to the original OP, the mandate isn't for all Federal Employees...it's for employees in the Executive Branch....Congress and their aides are exempt as is the USPS as pointed out above. If a mandate is so important, why make exceptions? Also, as pointed out above...illegal immigrants are not required to be vaccinated as a condition of staying in the US awaiting their applications for entry. Are you telling me that we can't tell these people that they will be returned to their home countries or Mexico unless they're vaccinated? I have to be vaccinated to travel abroad...and people entering the country legally are required to provide proof of vaccination and a negative Covid test...but those entering this country illegally are getting a free pass? The Covid rate among those entering illegally has been in the 20% range. Why do we have different rules and exemptions if this is so important?
I'm not sure it matters...this will be yet another EO that gets tossed out by the Supreme Court based on constitutionality.....and unfortunately the effort will only further polarize the vaxxers and anti-vaxxers. Seems pretty counterproductive to me.
i would guess it was thrown out there to take peoples attention off of something else biden and company have fucked up.
A little SD back trolling, bet your quite the pocket fisherman.
Idaho rations health care statewide amid massive COVID surge
By REBECCA BOONE Associated PressSeptember 16, 2021 — 12:10pm
BOISE, Idaho — Idaho public health leaders on Thursday expanded health care rationing statewide amid a massive increase in the number of coronavirus patients requiring hospitalization.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare made the announcement after St. Luke's Health System, Idaho's largest hospital network, on Wednesday asked state health leaders to allow "crisis standards of care" because the increase in COVID-19 patients has exhausted the state's medical resources.
Idaho is one of the least vaccinated U.S. states, with only about 40% of its residents fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Only Wyoming and West Virginia have lower vaccination rates.
Crisis care standards mean that scarce resources such as ICU beds will be allotted to the patients most likely to survive. Other patients will be treated with less effective methods or, in dire cases, given pain relief and other palliative care.
Thursday's move came a week after Idaho officials started allowing health care rationing at hospitals in northern parts of the state.
"The situation is dire – we don't have enough resources to adequately treat the patients in our hospitals, whether you are there for COVID-19 or a heart attack or because of a car accident," Idaho Department of Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen said in statement.
He urged people to get vaccinated and wear masks indoors and in crowded outdoor settings.
"Our hospitals and healthcare systems need our help. The best way to end crisis standards of care is for more people to get vaccinated. It dramatically reduces your chances of having to go to the hospital if you do get sick from COVID-19," Jeppesen said.
One in every 201 Idaho residents tested positive for COVID-19 over the past week, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The mostly rural state ranks 12th in the U.S. for newly confirmed cases per capita. More than 1,300 new coronavirus cases were reported to the state on Wednesday, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
Hospitalizations have skyrocketed. On Monday, the most recent data available from the state showed that 678 people were hospitalized statewide with coronavirus.
Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care unit beds has stayed mostly flat for the last two weeks at 70 people each day — suggesting the state may have reached the limit of its ability to treat ICU patients.
Though all of the state's hospitals can now ration health care resources as needed, some might not need to take that step. Each hospital will decide how to implement the crisis standards of care in its own facility, public health officials said.
Kootenai Health in the city of Coeur d'Alene was the first hospital in the state to officially enter crisis standards of care last week.
At the time, Chief of Staff Dr. Robert Scoggins said some patients were being treated in a conference center that had been converted into a field hospital. Others received treatment in hallways or in converted emergency room lobbies. Urgent and elective surgeries are on hold across much of the state.
On Wednesday, nearly 92% of all of the COVID-19 patients in St. Luke's hospitals were unvaccinated. Sixty one of the hospital's 78 ICU patients had COVID-19. St. Luke's physicians have pleaded with Idaho residents for months to get vaccinated and take steps to slow the spread of coronavirus, warning that hospitals beds were quickly running out.
Public health officials have warned Idaho residents for weeks to take extra care to ensure they don't end up in hospitals. Last week, Jeppesen said residents should take their medications as prescribed, wear seatbelts and reconsider participating in any activities such as cycling that could lead to injuries.
The health care crisis isn't just impacting hospitals — primary care physicians and medical equipment suppliers are also struggling to cope with the crush of coronavirus-related demand.
One major medical supplier, Norco Medical, said demand for oxygen tanks and related equipment has increased, sometimes forcing the company to send patients home with fewer cylinders than they would normally provide. The company is also asking people to return unused or unneeded oxygen tanks so they will have enough on hand for the surge.
"There is a limit to everything, my leadership team and I were actually discussing this and we certainly all agreed that the word we'd like to use right now is that things are getting tight," Norco President Elias Margonis told Boise television station KTVB. "The concern is how much tighter will it get."
Primary Health Medical Group, Idaho's largest independent primary care and urgent care system, late last month was forced to shorten operating hours because its waiting rooms were so packed with patients that staffers were staying hours past closing in order to see them all. Meanwhile, the company was dealing with higher-than-normal numbers of staffers out sick because they had been exposed to coronavirus in the community or had symptoms and were awaiting tests. Vaccination provides strong protection against becoming seriously ill with coronavirus, but the highly contagious delta variant can still cause "breakthrough" cases in vaccinated people.
As case numbers continued to increase, some of Primary Health Medical Group's 21 clinics in southwestern Idaho have had to stop operating on weekends or close certain days of the week, said CEO Dr. David Peterman.
Now the medical group is also preparing to monitor its patients who are released earlier than they normally would be from the hospital after emergencies, Peterman said.
"We will see more visits with patients that are avoiding the emergency room and patients who are sicker and need more care," Peterman said. "We are setting up a system right now to make sure over this weekend that we are immediately notified if one of our patients is discharged early from the hospital so we can make sure those patients are OK."
Resources have been exhausted across the medical system, Peterman said.
"This is heart-wrenching. I've practiced medicine in southwest Idaho for 40 years and I have never seen anything like this," he said. "I feel for the doctors and the nurses and the staff in the hospital who are making very difficult decisions."
Stay safe over that @ID...
Sadly, much of the issue is staffing. Due to high cost of living with the influx of money from California and Western Washington, there is little incentive for traveling nurses or those looking to come work. Hard to find housing, rent is insane. And then many nurses are leaving over vax mandates.
So the gov't wants to solve the problem they created. Sounds about right.
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