'Don't make us ration care': Banner Health physician leader pleads for Arizona governor's help

Phoenix-based Banner Health Chief Clinical Officer Marjorie Bessel, MD, is urging  government officials to implement statewide COVID-19 mitigation strategies, according to CBS 5.

Dr. Bessel is asking Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to stop indoor dining and to impose a statewide curfew and mask mandate as a COVID-19 surge continues to strain hospitals in the state. Banner Health suspended elective surgeries Jan. 1, and its Arizona hospitals continue to operate near 100 percent capacity, Dr. Bessel said at a Jan. 6 news conference, according to the report. 

"We need mitigation and enforcement. Don't make us ration care," Dr. Bessel told reporters at the news conference, according to CBS 5

Arizona reported more than 7,200 new cases of COVID-19 Jan. 6. Joshua LaBaer, MD, PhD, director of the Biodesign Institute research center at Arizona State University, said Arizona has become the COVID-19 "hot spot of the world," according to ABC News

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