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Photo by Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty ImagesA man walks by a sign thanking hospital workers across the street from the Elmhurst Hospital Center in Queens, N.Y., on Tuesday.New York governor pleads for help
by Rachel Lynn Aldrich
Posted 3/31/20, 12:34 pm
New York needs 1 million more healthcare workers to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. A 1,000-bed Navy hospital ship arrived at a Manhattan pier on Monday to ease the burden on city hospitals as the city’s death toll neared 1,000. “I am asking healthcare professionals across the country, if you don’t have a healthcare crisis in your community, please come help us in New York now,” Cuomo said.
Could this happen in my town? COVID-19 has battered major cities, including Chicago, Detroit, and New Orleans. U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., warned this week that hospitals are nearly at capacity, and officials are converting the New Orleans convention center into a recovery unit for coronavirus patients. More and more areas are under stay-at-home orders. But big cities aren’t the only places at risk: Hot spots are erupting in rural and suburban areas such as Albany, Ga.; Decatur County, Ind.; and Blaine County, Idaho.
Dig deeper: Read Emily Belz’s report on the new Samaritan’s Purse field hospital in New York’s Central Park.
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Rachel Lynn Aldrich
Rachel is an assistant editor for WORLD Digital. She is a Patrick Henry College and World Journalism Institute graduate. Rachel resides with her husband in Wheaton, Ill.