Florida hospital CEOs tell DeSantis what they are seeing during latest COVID-19 spike

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Faced with falling canvass numbers, rising COVID-19 cases and attacks from imaginable 2022 challengers, Gov. Ron DeSantis held a virtual roundtable with infirmary leaders crossed the authorities connected Wednesday greeting to speech astir however they are dealing with the influx of COVID-19 patients successful caller weeks arsenic the delta variant takes hold.

Hospital CEO’s from Tampa Orlando, Miami and North Broward each told DeSantis the existent surge is mostly owed to the unvaccinated.

“You know, 95 percent of our existent patients present are unvaccinated,” said Shane Strum, CEO of North Broward Health.

Tampa General CEO John Couris said his infirmary has the astir COVID-19 patients it has seen passim the pandemic and its exigency country is full.

Over the past week, Orlando Health CEO David Strong said it has hovered astir 500 COVID-19 affirmative patients crossed its system.

On Wednesday, Florida acceptable different grounds with 12,041 COVID hospitalizations. That’s up 526 from the previous grounds acceptable Tuesday.

Northeast Florida has not been spared.

New numbers released by UF Health connected Wednesday amusement it has 236 radical successful the infirmary for COVID-19 with 57 successful the ICU.

Ascension St. Vincent’s has 387 radical successful its hospitals, up 11 from Tuesday. That’s a 203% summation from the highest highest successful January.

There were nary Jacksonville-area infirmary CEOs astatine the roundtable gathering Tuesday, but Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry was connected the telephone and said 99% of the area’s COVID-19 patients are not vaccinated.

“A batch of radical are acrophobic and panicking. From my perspective, this is really, the solution is to get vaccinated,” Curry said. “I’m not suggesting we coerce oregon unit oregon mandate radical to get vaccinated, but if we support moving unneurotic to amended them that the vaccine is effective, it volition support you retired of the hospital, and it volition support you from getting really, truly sick.”

In South Florida, the epicenter for the pandemic past year, hospitals are not seeing arsenic large of a spike successful patients.

One infirmary CEO attributes that to the precocious vaccination complaint successful Miami-Dade County.

“We’re successful a batch amended signifier and I deliberation portion of it is the information that Miami-Dade County, astatine slightest with 1 dose, is 78% vaccinated,” said Jackson Health System CEO Carlos Migoya, who added it has astir fractional the fig of COVID-19 patients it saw during the peak. “There’s decidedly a correlation with the precocious vaccine successful the counties and the corruption rates successful those counties.”

For comparison, 52% percent of Duval County residents person received astatine slightest 1 dose.

MORE | Agape Health moving with metropolis to unfastened further COVID-19 investigating sites successful Jacksonville

Strong said helium believes hospitalizations person plateaued successful Orlando.

“We anticipation what we’re looking at, if you look astatine the models successful the UK arsenic good arsenic the Netherlands, this highest went up and past fell precise quickly, truthful we’re hoping that aforesaid happening occurs here,” Strong said.

DeSantis said helium hopes that’s the inclination crossed the state.

The infirmary CEOs did admit they are putting immoderate elective procedures connected clasp due to the fact that successful immoderate cases they person staffing shortages.

The hospitals besides told the DeSantis that little-known monoclonal antibody treatments are showing committedness if patients question attraction with the onset of symptoms.

MORE: What are monoclonal antibodies and however bash they dainty COVID?

“Almost 100 percent of our patients person told america that 24 to 48 hours later, they consciousness overmuch better,” said Couris.

Despite the spike successful COVID-19 cases, infirmary leaders encouraged those successful request of aesculapian attraction to sojourn hospitals to beryllium treated.

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