COVID Omicron NY: 40 hospitals stop elective surgeries due to low bed capacity

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Sunday, January 9, 2022

40 hospitals stop elective surgeries due to low bed capacity

Naveen Dhaliwal has more on the spread of COVID cases.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Dozens of hospitals in New York have been ordered to stop elective surgeries due to low bed capacity.

The New York State Department of Health made the announcement on Saturday, which ordered 40 hospitals, mainly in the central and western regions, to stop non-essential, non-urgent elective surgeries after meeting the state's threshold for low-capacity facilities.

The order means that impacted hospitals must turn away these types of procedures for a minimum of two weeks.

"We will use every available tool to help ensure that hospitals can manage the COVID-19 winter surge," Acting State Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett said.

About one in every five Americans has now tested positive for COVID-19 as children under five are being hospitalized with the virus at record high numbers.

This comes amid a rise in COVID hospitalizations throughout the state.

On Saturday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul reported 11,843 total hospitalizations due to COVID, marking an increase of 295.

New York also reported a statewide positivity rate of 21.17% along with 90,132 positive COVID cases.

Hochul urged parents to get their children vaccinated, saying that it's the key to the beating back the winter COVID surge along with the vaccine and booster.

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"Our vaccination rate among children is still too low. parents and guardians don't delay in getting your children vaccinated and boosted, if eligible. It's safe and widely available," Hochul said. "This is the one of the best ways to keep our numbers down, as well as wearing a mask and staying home if sick."

See the full list of the hospitals that have been ordered to stop elective surgeries below:

Mohawk Valley Region:

Faxton-St Luke's Healthcare St Luke's Division

Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital

St. Mary's Healthcare

A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital

Cobleskill Regional Hospital

Little Falls Hospital

Nathan Littauer Hospital

Rome Memorial Hospital, Inc

St Elizabeth Medical Center

St. Mary's Healthcare - Amsterdam Memorial Campus