New COVID Rules In MD Ahead Of Anticipated Hospital Surge

MARYLAND — Hospitals, businesses and nursing homes are subject to new orders to address the recent surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said at a news conference Tuesday.

"We are in a war right now, and the virus is winning," Hogan said. "Now more than ever I'm pleading with the people of our state to stand together a while longer to help us battle this surging virus."

As of Tuesday, state heath officials reported 4,186 people in Maryland have died from COVID-19.

"Twenty-six Marylanders died yesterday. That's more than one dying every hour in Maryland," Hogan said. "We've lost more Marylanders to COVID-19 than we lose each year to car accidents, gun violence and the flu combined."

Currently 1,046 people are hospitalized in the state due to COVID-19, according to authorities.

"Maryland hospitals are now reaching capacity," Hogan said Tuesday. "We are very concerned that hospitals in western Maryland, for example, are already at their capacity limit, and 19 hospitals across the state are above 90 percent capacity."

Even with the 6,000 beds provided for under the state's hospital surge plan, hospitals are at a critical point. Hogan noted Garrett and Allegany counties were particularly strained.

"To prevent the overburdening of our health care system and to stop more Marylanders from dying," the governor said immediate action was required.

To alleviate overcrowding, the Maryland Department of Health issued an emergency order enabling hospitals at or near capacity to transfer patients to other hospitals that can provide care.

"Currently, individual hospitals need to go critical care bed shopping — that usually takes place within their own medical system, ignoring available beds that maybe exist actually relatively close to them," according to Dr. Thomas Scalea, physician in chief at the R Adams Cowley University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

“Now a single phone call will give them access" to facilities regardless of affiliation, Scalea said. "This is about getting the right patient to the right place in the right amount of time to receive the correct level of medical care."

Added Scalea: "I’m certain that it will improve ICU bed flow as we anticipate a large number of critically ill patients."

Several new orders will also take effect impacting hospitals, restaurants and nursing homes:

• Hospitals should avoid any elective procedure admissions that are not urgent or life-saving, if possible, according to the Maryland Department of Health.
• Hospital visitation is restricted statewide until further notice, except for compassionate care, parents/guardians of minors, obstetrics and support for patients with disabilities.
• Bars and restaurants must be closed to indoor patrons from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., starting Friday. Hogan said the decision was made in collaboration with coronavirus task force members and industry representatives who found that "compliance with public health protocols drops dramatically later in the evening." Takeout and delivery operations may still continue during the hours that in-person operations are to cease.
• Fans will no longer be permitted at any collegiate stadiums or racetracks as of 5 p.m. Friday.
• At nursing homes, indoor visitation will generally be limited to compassionate care visits, and all visitors must have proof of a negative COVID test result within 72 hours before their visit. Staff members must be tested twice weekly, and residents must be tested once weekly, by Friday. The state is doubling the number of rapid response teams deployed to nursing homes and other hot spots for outbreaks.
• Retailers, organizations and religious institutions will revert to 50 percent capacity restrictions that were imposed during phase two, effective at 5 p.m. Friday. This includes fitness centers, personal services, social and fraternal clubs, bingo halls, ice skating rinks and bowling alleys.

Hogan encouraged wearing masks to prevent the spread of the virus and reminded Marylanders that a statewide executive order around face coverings remains in effect. It requires wearing a mask in any public indoor facility across the state and on public transportation as well as in outdoor public spaces where it is not possible to maintain a physical distance of 6 feet.

"The single best mitigation strategy that we have to fight the virus" is wearing a mask, Hogan said. "It's not a limitation on your right to infect other people, but it is the best way to keep you and your family members safe, to keep people out of the hospital and to save lives," Hogan said. "We remain in a state of emergency."

The developments come as the state and nation deal with a rapid increase in new COVID-19 cases.

“The sad reality is that all across America, more people are getting infected with COVID-19, more are being hospitalized, more are going into intensive care and more people are dying,” Hogan said.

The country broke a record for coronavirus-related hospitalizations Monday with more than 73,000 Americans hospitalized, he added.

"All across the country, this virus is spiking out of control at a rate much worse than it was in the spring," Hogan said.

Maryland broke a record for its single-day case increase on Saturday, when 2,321 new infections were confirmed. Tuesday saw the second-highest increase, with 2,149 new cases reported.

For the latest updates on the coronavirus in Maryland, get Patch news alerts.

In response to a spike in cases, Hogan last week restricted capacity at restaurants from 75 to 50 percent. State health officials advised against indoor gatherings of more than 25 and travel to certain states.

At Tuesday's news conference, Hogan asked Marylanders to get tested for the virus if they were going to see family members for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. In particular, he called on college students planning to return home, anyone visiting an older relative and those returning from out-of-state travel to get tested. Visit covidtest.maryland.gov for testing locations.

Several jurisdictions have added further restrictions in the past week: Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Harford County, Howard County, Montgomery County and Prince George's County.

Watch Hogan's news conference from Nov. 17.

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See Also:

• Coronavirus Patients At MD Hospitals, ICUs Double Since Nov. 1
• Hogan Reduces Restaurant, Bar Capacity As Coronavirus Cases Spike
• Fans Will Not Be At Baltimore Ravens Game Vs. Titans
• MD Adds Over 1K New Coronavirus Cases For 12th Day In A Row
• Virus Cases Spike In Nursing Homes; See Numbers In Maryland
• MD Coronavirus Case Count: 'Largest Daily Increase' To Date
• MoCo Officials: Hogan Needs To Impose Stronger COVID-19 Measures