Health & Fitness
Phoenix Mayor: Abrazo Hospitals Have ‘Run Out Of Morgue Beds’
In Arizona, a Phoenix hospital is out of morgue space — Mayor Kate Gallego says because of the governor's management of coronavirus crisis.
PHOENIX — Maricopa County has requested refrigerated trucks because a hospital system ran out of morgue space for people who died from COVID-19 complications, according to Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego.
In an appearance on MSNBC Friday morning, Gallego said Abrazo Health, which operates seven hospitals across the metro Phoenix area, “has run out of morgue beds.”
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“Maricopa County […] just announced that they are going to be getting refrigerated trucks because the Abrazo Health care system has run out of morgue beds,” Gallego said.
She also criticized Gov. Doug Ducey for restricting what local governments could do to combat COVID-19, a decision he partially reversed in June when he allowed cities to require masks and face coverings in public.
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“It is very scary out here. I wish we had given mayors the authority to act earlier,” she said.
Phoenix Mayor Gallego says Maricopa Co. has requested refrigerated trucks because one health system in the region has run out of morgue beds. pic.twitter.com/uCeHfzjjLk
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 10, 2020
Gallego’s office and spokespeople with Maricopa County and Abrazo Health didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
As of July 10, COVID-19 had killed 1,009 people in Maricopa County, according to the county Public Health Department website.
About 51% percent of those deaths have been people who lived in long-term care facilities, which include group homes, and skilled nursing, assisted living, rehabilitation, and hospice facilities.
But county figures show the COVID-19 illness is now killing more people outside of these congregate living facilities: Two weeks ago, 60% of the total coronavirus deaths in Maricopa County were residents of long-term care facilities.
In Arizona, 2,082 people have died due to COVID-19, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
As Arizona has spent the past six weeks becoming one of the national hotspots for COVID-19, the request for refrigerated trucks and space to store bodies is a milestone of sorts. In April, when New York experienced a surge in COVID-19 deaths, refrigerated trucks and trailers were used as temporary morgues.
This story was originally published by the Arizona Mirror. For more stories from the Arizona Mirror, visit AZMirror.com.
