They told Herbert that if the coronavirus trend continued, they would need to set the criteria, Greg Bell, president of the Utah Hospital Association, told the Tribune.
“At the end of the day, an older person probably wouldn’t get the nod compared to a healthy young person,” Bell said.
Bell said Utah is suffering from “phenomenal case growth and spread” from Covid-19.
The state reported more than 1,000 new cases per day over the past 12 days. According to the Johns Hopkins University, Utah had the highest 7-day average for new daily cases on Sunday.
Since the pandemic began, Utah has infected more than 104,882 people with coronavirus and at least 572 people have died.
Even ahead of any formal health care rationing, a Utah mother who suffered a heart attack was delayed receiving adequate treatment due to the surge in Covid-19.
Eventually Terry was rushed to a hospital that had the special care she needed, but her condition has worsened.
“We have seen in the past few weeks that our health system is working at full capacity,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn.
“I don’t know what to do anymore,” she said. “I’m really not trying to scare anyone. I’m just trying to let you know what is going on and give you the facts.”
Herbert had a wish for the public:
“I hope people take this seriously,” said the governor.
CNN’s Holly Yan and Martin Savidge contributed to this report.
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