For the second day, Mercy Springfield nears record high of COVID-19 patients | Corona Virus

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FILE – In this Tuesday, June 22, 2021 file photo, a man receives a COVID-19 vaccine at a clinic in Springfield, Missouri. A Missouri hospital official tells anyone who makes derogatory remarks about a COVID-19 vaccine to “shut up” as state officials are requesting federal help in dealing with a surge in cases that urges some counties to take new precautions. Deep resistance to vaccines has allowed a delta variant, identified For the first time in India, it has taken hold in the state, straining hospitals, particularly in the Springfield area.(Nathan Babes/The Springfield News-Leader via AP, File)

Nathan Babes

SPRINGFIELD, Missouri — 115 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 at Mercy Springfield Hospital Monday, the hospital’s chief administrative officer said Monday, just short of the hospital’s record of 116 set the day before.

The rising numbers are part of a troubling trend that has made Missouri among the worst states in the country for a spike in coronavirus cases, according to data from The New York Times. On Monday, Missouri was tied with Arkansas at the top of that list, with a rate of 16 confirmed coronavirus cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days. Nevada ranked third with a rate of 15 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days.

Neighboring states are also seeing a rise in cases, but by contrast, Illinois has reported a rate of just two cases per 100,000 residents, and Kansas of six cases per 100,000 residents over the past seven days.

The outbreak in Missouri has been particularly high in the north-central counties, as well as in the Joplin and Springfield area, boosting hospital patient numbers as well.

Eric Frederick of Mercy Springfield Hospital tweeted that the hospital was expanding to include a second intensive care unit designated for COVID-19.

“Doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists are tired,” Frederick wrote on Twitter on Monday. “Hey, everybody’s tired.”

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