The seven-day rolling average for coronavirus transmission is at an all-time high, and there has been a steep rise in the number of COVID-19 related hospitalizations.
Governor Tate Reeves says he will not issue statewide mandates nor request additional federal healthcare workers to aid hospitals at this time.
“At this time we don’t have any plans to extend the state of emergency,” says Reeves. He continued, saying that the state has not received substantial shipments of monoclonal antibody treatments from the federal government. Governor Reeves says one reason may be because most monoclonal antibodies are not as effective against the omicron variant. He says ”We need more testing from the federal government. We need more monoclonal antibodies allocated from the federal government and that’s what we’ve been begging them to send us much to no avail for the last 10 days.”
More than 240 nursing homes and long-term care facilities across the state have reported outbreaks of the coronavirus, meaning at least one resident tested positive. Long-term care residents are the most highly vaccinated demographic in the state, and experts say this has helped to prevent the most severe outcomes. Bruce Kelly, owner of The Madison Health and Rehab, says all of his residents are fully vaccinated.
Kelly says “I think the vaccine has been crucial in preventing it from spreading. And to help prevent severity if they do come down with COVID-19, so we’ve been excited for the vaccines.”
Hospitals across Mississippi continue to face staffing shortages, and experts say without systems of care through an emergency order by the Governor the healthcare system could quickly become overwhelmed.
