Healthcare workers transfer a patient to Covid-19 Unit at United Memorial Medical Center in Houston, Texas on Thursday, July 2, 2020.
MARK FELIX
Hospitals in Houston, Texas are on track to be overwhelmed in about two weeks as coronavirus cases increase, Mayor Sylvester Turner said Sunday.
“The number of people who get sick and go to hospitals has increased exponentially. The number of people in our ICU beds has increased exponentially,” Turner said on CBS ‘”Face The Nation”. “In fact, if we don’t deal with this virus quickly, in about two weeks our hospital system could be in serious trouble.”
Texas reached a record number of new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, reporting 8,258 people infected for 24 hours. Nearly 200,000 in the state have tested positive, according to data provided by state health officials, including more than 35,000 in Harris County, which contains Houston. At least 2,608 people in the state have died of the disease.
In Houston, the percentage of positive virus tests has increased to almost 25%. Turner said people of color were being disproportionately impacted, particularly Hispanic residents.
Turner, a Democrat, said the main problem facing Houston hospitals is personnel, not a shortage of beds.
“We can always provide additional beds, but we need people, nurses and everyone else, medical professionals, to take care of those beds. That is the critical point right now,” Turner said.
New daily cases in the United States have increased considerably in recent weeks, threatening the incipient economic recovery. The virus has spread particularly rapidly along the Sun Belt, after reaching the northeast earlier in the year.
Houston is the fourth most populous city in the United States, with a population of approximately 2.3 million people, according to the Census Bureau.
About 37 states, including Texas, report an increase in the number of daily cases. While the number of new cases has increased dramatically, it is still unclear what the death rate from new infections will be, and health officials in many states reported that younger people account for a higher proportion of sick people.
Turner called Covid-19 an “equal opportunity abuser” and said in Houston that “anyone 20 to 90 years old will be affected.”
“If you join too closely, you will feed this virus,” he said.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, paused at the reopening of the state last month as infections increased, ordering the closure of bars and restaurants to limit capacity.
On Thursday, Abbott issued an order requiring face covering in public spaces and allowing local officials to impose restrictions on gatherings of more than 10 people.
“We have the ability to keep business open and move our economy forward so that Texans can continue to earn a salary, but it requires each of us to do our part to protect each other, and that means wearing a mask in public spaces. “Abbott said at the time.
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