[...] [...] Also of note, the numbers we have on COVID infections due to hospitalizations are likely undercounts, since they only include people who are hospitalized for 14 days or more and only...
The Biden administration during the Omicron wave considered publicly releasing data detailing how prevalent Covid-19 spread was inside individual hospitals, but ultimately chose to keep that information private, according to two people familiar with the discussions.
The decision to withhold the names, based partly on concerns about duplicative data and partly on fears of embarrassing hospitals, denies patients the opportunity to steer clear of health systems with poor track records and allows facilities to avoid public scrutiny, patient advocates say.
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“Not knowing what the likelihood of getting transmission in the hospital really impacts an individual’s ability to quote unquote ‘make a personal decision’ on their risk levels,” said Mia Ives-Rublee, a disability rights advocate who has a lung condition that makes her more susceptible to Covid.
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Throughout the pandemic, many hospitals chose not to implement measures that could have dramatically decreased transmission, according to workers, health executives and patients around the country.
Many facilities no longer require masks for visitors or staff, despite CDC recommendations. Even where masks are required, workers and visitors usually don surgical masks, among the least protective ones available, instead of N95s. Hospitals follow CDC guidelines, which allow Covid-positive staff to return while infectious.
Also of note, the numbers we have on COVID infections due to hospitalizations are likely undercounts, since they only include people who are hospitalized for 14 days or more and only include people who test positive while in hospital. Perhaps understandable since it's hard to tell where you contracted COVID otherwise, but honestly quite scary as a high risk person preparing for surgery. We have absolutely no clue how many people get COVID after a night or two in hospital.
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Also of note, the numbers we have on COVID infections due to hospitalizations are likely undercounts, since they only include people who are hospitalized for 14 days or more and only include people who test positive while in hospital. Perhaps understandable since it's hard to tell where you contracted COVID otherwise, but honestly quite scary as a high risk person preparing for surgery. We have absolutely no clue how many people get COVID after a night or two in hospital.