Hospitals

Amid the COVID-19 epidemic, there has been a steep drop in patients seeking nonurgent primary care and specialty care.

Health & Safety

COVID-19 Hits Some Health Care Workers With Pay Cuts And Layoffs

7:30pm April 02, 2020

by Martha Bebinger

As the health industry focuses on COVID-19, there has been a big drop in nonurgent visits for primary care and specialty care. Medical practices are being forced to furlough or lay off staff.

Some doctors say they are being told they can't use their own personal protective equipment, such as gloves and masks.

National

Doctors Say Hospitals Are Stopping Them From Wearing Masks

9:59am April 02, 2020

by Leila Fadel

Health care workers say some hospitals are punishing them for wearing personal protective gear in the halls or that they brought from home.

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Health & Safety

Fact Check: Are North Carolina's Hospitals Typically '85 Percent Full?'

10:37am April 01, 2020

by Neal Charnoff and Paul Specht, Politifact NC, WRAL

Hospitals are preparing for an influx of patients as the novel coronavirus spreads across the U.S.

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Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), speaks during a news conference in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, March 10th, 2020.

To Stop The Pandemic, Seema Verma Is 'Getting Rid Of A Lot Of Regulations'

7:41pm March 31, 2020

by Mary Louise Kelly

As head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Verma says she's working to ease safety rules and lighten licensing requirements, to expand the number of hospital beds and health workers.

A tent stands outside the emergency entrance of Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, on Saturday.

Are Hospitals Seeing A Surge Of Coronavirus Patients? Some Officials Aren't Saying

6:06pm March 31, 2020

by Lauren Sommer

With a lack of tests, epidemiologists say the next best way to monitor the pandemic is by tracking hospitalizations. But hotspots like California and Washington are releasing little information.

A spokesperson for St. Barnabas Hospital said Monday that it takes four to six days for the hospital to receive coronavirus test results.

New York City Hospitals Struggle To Get Virus Testing Online Amid Patient Surge

4:22pm March 31, 2020

by Rebecca Hersher

On-site testing was delayed for weeks at a Brooklyn hospital that has been designated COVID-19 only. Rapid on-site testing can help hospitals prevent the virus from spreading inside their facilities.

ICU capabilities vary not only from hospital to hospital, but also from region to region. Some parts of the country have far more critical care beds by population than others.

ICU Bed Capacity Varies Widely Nationwide. See How Your Area Stacks Up

7:47pm March 25, 2020

by Robert Benincasa

An NPR analysis of the nation's 100,000 ICU beds finds some communities can accommodate far more critically ill patients than others, signaling potential disparities in care in the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Doctors test a hospital staffer Tuesday for coronavirus, in a triage tent that's been set up outside the E.R. at St. Barnabas hospital in the Bronx. Hospital workers are at higher risk of getting COVID-19, and public health experts fear a staffing shortag

States Get Creative To Find And Deploy More Health Workers In COVID-19 Fight

8:40am March 25, 2020

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

To stop COVID-19, retired doctors are signing up to take clinical shifts. Specialists, including dentists, could move to front line care. And med students are fielding calls in overwhelmed clinics.

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North Carolina Hospitals Ask Cooper To Issue 'Shelter In Place' Order

10:56am March 24, 2020

by Neal Charnoff

A coalition of North Carolina hospitals has asked Governor Roy Cooper to issue a “shelter in place” order to prevent a surge in COVID-19 cases.

"If we're not able to address the short-term cash needs of rural hospitals, we're going to see hundreds ... close before this crisis ends," warns the head of the National Rural Hospital Association. "This is not hyperbole."

Health & Safety

Coronavirus Threatens Rural Hospitals Already At The Financial Brink

9:39am March 21, 2020

by Lauren Weber

About half of U.S. rural hospitals operate in the red on a good day. Now facing a pandemic, hospital CEOs warn that, without federal help, their doors may close when the community most needs them.