© 2024 Boise State Public Radio
NPR in Idaho
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Click here for information on transmitter status in the Treasure and Magic Valleys
Boise State Public Radio News is here to keep you current on the news surrounding COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Idaho Could Have 9-Plus Patients For Every Bed In Coronavirus Outbreak

Kevin Morris
/
Flickr Creative Commons

An Associated Press analysis of data from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid shows Idaho has about 2,280 hospital beds statewide, and fewer than half of them are empty and available to take new patients on any given day.

 

But officials with the Idaho Hospital Association say their count is far higher with roughly 2,800 acute care beds — including 555 intensive care beds — reported in Idaho this year.

 

Either number means there may not be nearly enough beds for coronavirus patients if even the most conservative estimates from state epidemiologists and infectious disease experts are accurate. 

You make stories like this possible.

The biggest portion of Boise State Public Radio's funding comes from readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

Your donation today helps make our local reporting free for our entire community.