MIAMI (WSVN) - As concerns grow over the rapid rise of local COVID-19 cases due largely in part to the Delta variant, two South Florida hospitals are taking action to help stop the spread.
As of Wednesday, Jackson Health System will suspend visitations to most inpatient units.
“This is the pandemic of the unvaccinated,” said Jackson Health System CEO Carlos Migoya.
Visitor restrictions have been reinstated by Jackson Health System as a new round ramps up in the battle against COVID-19.
“The people that are getting sick and unvaccinated are getting sick very fast,” said infectious disease expert Dr. Lilian Abbo. “We were not seeing this in any of the other waves of the pandemic.”
Jackson Health System is currently treating 143 COVID-19 positive patients, 91% of whom are unvaccinated.
Their caseload has more than doubled in the last two weeks.
Memorial Healthcare System has also limited visitors as their coronavirus positive cases climb.
They are currently treating 234 COVID-19 positive patients, 98% of whom are unvaccinated.
Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital is part of the Memorial Healthcare System, and they too are dealing with the Delta variant.
“The numbers are going up,” said Caitlin Stella with Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital.
The children’s hospital in Hollywood is seeing a slow increase in patients.
“The adult numbers are exponentially higher but when we start to see even the tiniest bump, because we’ve been pretty steady for a while, the tiniest bump means the numbers are going up,” said Stella.
While most of the new cases are among younger people, there’s a reported outbreak at John Knox Village, an assisted living complex in Pompano Beach.
Those who have tested positive are said to be experiencing mild symptoms.
“Although we were back to having programming, we were not operating at full capacity,” said COO of John Knox Village Bill Pickhardt, “so there is no way to know if there was a particular event that people participated in that caused the spread.”
Florida is currently leading the nation in new coronavirus cases, but the majority are among those who are not vaccinated.
“Anyone aged 12 and older is eligible for a vaccine. This is our best defense to beat the pandemic,” said Migoya.
As the new school year approaches, Miami-Dade and Broward County Public Schools still plan on moving forward with masks being optional for students, faculty and staff.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.