Page 10 - February 2022 Issue.indd

DOLLARS AND SENSE by Tolbert Rowe

Our Heal Care System is On Life Support

in the United States and University of Maryland Shore Regional of teachers before the pandemic even
especially in Maryland are Health and Choptank Community worse.
We blessed with state-of-the-art Health, are requesting action by
We all know that the best place for our
health care services. We have world local residents to help alleviate the
children is in school, not sitting at a
renowned hospitals within a 2–3 hour unprecedented strain that the current
computer at home. But many schools
radius that afford us the luxury of COVID-19 surge is placing on the area’s
and school systems struggling with 20-
accessing the best health care services EMS personnel, frontline responders
30% of their staff s absent are forced to
in the country, and, in many cases, the and hospitals.”
revert back to virtual instruction for
world. But our health care system is on
Covid infections, and the accompanying the sake of being able to provide any
its knees right now, struggling to provide
limitation of activity of those who instruction at all. Omicron is Deja Vue
world class health care.
have been exposed is reducing the all over again.

The United States seven-day coronavirus available workforce not only of health
Fortunately, or unfortunately depending
case number tops 700,000 for the fi rst care workers but also those in public
on how you look at it, this surge in
time, as reported by Johns Hopkins schools, manufacturing facilities and
positive cases is easily identifi ed. One
University on January 10. January 15 retail and food establishments. Every
would think things would be diff erent
reports over 1,300 hospitalized in the business is struggling to operate with
then they were in the beginning of the
state of Maryland with 34% of those fewer employees.
pandemic nearly two years ago before
tested being positive for omicron
Access to prompt and effi cient healthcare vaccines. Omicron’s easy transmissibility
coronavirus.
has been severely impacted by the lack has moved infection and hospitalization

According to a press release of staffing to manage the influx of Covid numbers to the highest levels since the

from Caroline County Economic patients who are overwhelming the Covid pandemic started.
Development on January 12, “In just system. 45-50% of ICU beds in Maryland
Remember how scared we were about a
the past two weeks, more than 5,500 are occupied by Covid patients.
disease that we had no idea how to deal

confirmed COVID-19 infections have
Children have not experienced what with its impact on people? We had no
been reported in the fi ve-county region
would be considered a “normal” school idea how to treat those infected other
– far exceeding the numbers seen over
environment for two years, and it is than to keep them comfortable. The
the two-year lifespan of this pandemic.”
unlikely that they will by the end of sickest were put on ventilators because
“Regional county officials, including this school year. Their mental health, they were unable to breath on their own.
the emergency medical services (EMS) and that of teachers, administrators and Remember how the automobile industry
departments of Caroline, Dorchester, other support staff has dropped to levels quickly adapted their assembly lines to

Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties, where many feel the only solution is to make ventilators?
and the chief medical officers of find another career making a shortage

Remember how we struggled to find
toilet paper, meat, and other staples we
relied upon to survive and thrive in a
world we had come to take for granted.
“Your Mortgage Consultant Since 1985”
Remember how we became laser
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companies were making in their quest
for a vaccine, a quest that they had
already gotten a substantial start on in
their research into SARS vaccines.
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tolbert@baycapitalmortgage.com C. Tolbert Rowe, brought to the market too quickly.
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