A former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
encouraged states on Monday to direct their attention to urban
hospitals, saying the federal government will not be able to support
every location.
Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb
called on state officials to stop low-census hospitals from “consuming
supplies” by doing elective medical care and to redirect the resources
to urban areas.
Gottlieb warned that the state governments “should expect urban
centers to all be engulfed” by the pandemic. He urged urban medical
centers to prepare for that possibility, adding that “Many still
aren’t.”
“Hope for best. Prepare for worst. That should be policy in every community,” he posted
“We’ll see a spike in cases, and tragically deaths, over next few
weeks,” Gottlieb added. “Some communities have a head start. They must
use it.”
The former commissioner predicted that April “will be hard
everywhere” as “multiple epicenters” of the virus will develop, which
will “severely strain our system.” He added that state officials need to
do everything to decrease spread, contain the virus, back providers,
preserve life and “protect vulnerable financially, medically.”
The coronavirus has infected more than 153,200 people in the U.S.,
causing at least 2,828 deaths. A total of 5,545 people have recovered,
according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Governors across the country are dealing with increasing cases and a
lack of medical supplies as they plead for more equipment. New York,
including New York City, has been hit particularly hard with 33,768 cases and 790 deaths.
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/public-global-health/490217-ex-fda-head-urges-states-to-focus-on-urban-hospitals
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