Hospitals seeing COVID-19 plateau, expect it to worsen

Severe hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications have plateaued in recent weeks, but local health experts say that’s likely a short-lived phenomenon.

The upcoming flu season, continued staffing shortages and a surge in COVID patient transfers from rural hospitals across the state, owed largely to low vaccination rates and the transmissible delta variant, are proving concerning for health care organizations.

“We are not out of the woods yet, but we are cautiously optimistic about the downward hospitalization trend we are seeing,” said Banner Health’s Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Marjorie Bessel during a Wednesday news briefing. “However, this is not the time to let our guard down. The delta variant is still in our communities and it spreads rampantly. If you’re vaccinated, you have a very small chance of landing in the hospital. If you’re not vaccinated, the chances of you becoming critically ill and needing to be hospitalized increase substantially.”