Alaska ties its record for most inpatients with COVID-19 and reports more than 1,000 new cases over the weekend

An increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations in Alaska worsened over the weekend as the state tied a previous record for most patients hospitalized with the virus at the same time.

The number of people hospitalized with the virus peaked at 151 during most of the weekend, Jared Kosin, president of the Alaska Association of Homes and State Centers, said Monday. The last and only time many people with COVID-19 were treated in Alaska hospitals was in December 2020.

“We’ve reached new highs and it looks like we’re not done yet,” Kosin said Monday. “Don’t be fooled: this is a crisis.”

The next two weeks will be crucial in determining how the crisis unfolds, Kosin said. So far, the latest influx of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations has shown few signs of slowing down: the state reported 1,155 new cases in residents and nonresidents on Monday for three days, according to the Department of Health’s scorecard. Alaska Social Services updated on weekdays.

No beds were available at the ICU in Anchorage on Monday, a municipal board reported. In Mat-Su, about a third of hospitalizations were virus-related.

For weeks, Alaska hospitals have been operating at an unsustainable level due to the combination of busy admissions in the summer, staff shortages, and the growing increase in COVID-19 patients with high needs. Providers report long emergency waits, sporadic cancellations of elective procedures, and ICU patients competing for beds.

“If things continue to accelerate, it’s the scenario we don’t talk about, that we haven’t talked about, which unfortunately other states have gone through,” Kosin said. It might seem like canceled surgeries on a daily basis: “and the surgeries I’m talking about are not cosmetic surgeries; these are cancer extractions, very serious procedures that affect life ”, in addition to setting up field hospitals and pushing the exhausted workforce even beyond its breaking point.

“I don’t know how to tell people more that this is a very serious crisis and I hope people understand it and take action on it,” Kosin said.

[Among the unvaccinated, delta variant more than doubles risk of hospitalization]

When asked what state or local interventions should be considered at this time, Kosin said that “anything that makes life easier for our front-line caregivers and our facilities, we should do it. Even if these are strong lifts at the moment, we should throw all possible resources at this issue, ”he said.

The hospital association has sent a list of lawsuits to the state for consideration, which include addressing staff shortages by removing regulatory barriers that could prevent the strengthening of health personnel in the low-48 area and using federal resources to increase the deployment of nurses in Alaska.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy and administration officials said Thursday they were working on some of those demands to increase the number of people who can treat patients with COVID-19.

Dunleavy and other officials, at a press conference broadcast on Facebook, said vaccination remains the best solution to the ongoing crisis. But the governor stopped a step to urge vaccination, instead of saying Alaska should talk to their doctor about vaccination “if that’s what they want to do.”

[‘Be vigilant’: Vaccine breakthrough COVID-19 cases in Alaska are surprising, usually less severe and part of the reality of the pandemic for now]

In addition to getting vaccinated, what Alaska can do right now to support health care workers and health care centers is to wear masks inside public spaces, limit indoor gatherings and wash their hands, he said. dir Kosin on Monday.

“It is these practical steps that will make a difference immediately, because this will slow down the transmission. And if the transmission slows down, that will slow down hospitalizations, so it will really make a big difference in the short term, ”Kosin said.

[An unvaccinated elementary school teacher took off her mask for a read-aloud. Within days, half her class was positive for delta.]

Alaska, which in January ranked first in the country for per capita vaccination, is now 33rd among the states. The state reported Monday that 60.6% of Alaska 12-year-olds and older had received at least one dose of vaccine and 54.9% were fully vaccinated.

The average seven-day test positivity rate in the state was 7.27%.