SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Palomar Medical Center confirmed Monday that patients are now being treated at the federal alternate care site on their property, as local hospitals work to keep up with the COVID-19 cases.
This alternate care site was set up on the 10th and 11th floors of the hospital. The National Guard was called in to run the facility in December to help ease the burden on hospitals and staff in both San Diego and Imperial Counties.
Monday, the state told ABC 10News that the site was caring for 10 patients. The unit can serve up to 200 patients that don’t require ICU care.
As of Sunday, San Diego County reported about 1,500 people in the hospital being treated for the coronavirus, with 376 of them in the ICU.
As cases surge, there’s also a call to bring the USNS Mercy back to California to help with the case surge. The ship was sent to Los Angeles last March to help with the overflow of patients. It spent two months there treating non-COVID patients to help free up beds and ventilators.
ABC10News has reached out to the Navy about the possibility of getting the Mercy involved again, and we’re waiting to hear back from them.