President Joe Biden is sending 1,000 military medical personnel to help with Covid related staffing crises at hospitals in several states, including Rhode Island.
Biden said the teams will support Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, University Hospital in Newark, the University of New Mexico hospital in Albuquerque, Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn, and the Cleveland Clinic.
A Department of Defense medical team consisting of 23 personnel will arrive as early as the end of next week to support Rhode Island Hospital in its Emergency Department and/or Medical/Surgical unit. They will be stationed there for 30 days. It will include a mix of doctors, nurses, medics, and support staff, appropriate to the COVID response requirements that Rhode Island Hospital has now.
A National Disaster Medical System medical team consisting of 14 personnel will arrive as early as next week to support Kent Hospital in its Emergency Department and/or Medical/Surgical Unit. They will be stationed there for 14 days. It will include a mix of nurses, medics, and support staff, appropriate to the COVID response requirements that Kent Hospital has now.
Happening now: President Biden delivers an update on the Biden-Harris Administration’s whole-of-government COVID-19 surge response. https://t.co/GLAKjAXFDJ
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 13, 2022
“We promised Rhode Islanders that we would pursue every resource to alleviate stress on our hospital system and support critical staffing needs. Yesterday, our whole of government COVID response team announced a series of initiatives and partnerships to help us make good on that promise,” said Governor McKee. “As part of this comprehensive action plan, several weeks ago, I sent a letter to FEMA requesting emergency medical personnel to provide direct support to local hospitals. Our Administration worked closely with local hospital leadership to complete the application process.”
“Today, I am encouraged that President Biden has announced that Rhode Island will receive a team of FEMA emergency medical personnel arriving over the next couple of weeks,” McKee continued. “I thank the President for recognizing the crucial need in Rhode Island and stepping up to ensure we were included as one of six states receiving this vital support.”
President Biden just announced that our administration will purchase an additional 500 million COVID-19 at home tests, bringing the total number of tests that will be distributed for free to 1 billion. pic.twitter.com/Ze8NSyKaf9
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 13, 2022
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