SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A Springfield, Missouri hospital on Sunday announced it opened its sixth COVID-19 ward as the delta virus variant rages in the state’s southwest region.
That's the most virus wards Mercy Hospital in Springfield has had. Chief Administrative Officer Erik Frederick tweeted that the hospital needed at most five COVID-19 wards last year.
The hospital was treating 133 virus patients as of Sunday.
“Many local rural communities don’t have high vaccination rates,” Frederick wrote. “They also don’t have a hospital. Get sick, come to Springfield. I think that’s getting left out of the narrative.”