March 16, 2020 / Mark Prvulovic
Health groups are asking hospitals to decrease or even halt elective surgeries as the coronavirus pandemic heats up.
As America prepares for what seems to be an inevitable influx of COVID-19 patients over the coming weeks, many medical providers are concerned that there won’t be enough ICU beds and ventilators to treat these new cases. Over the weekend, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams called on healthcare and hospital companies to consider halting all elective surgeries. 
Instead, the Surgeon General called on U.S. hospitals to conserve medical resources and further prepare for a surge in COVID-19 patients that could overwhelm the healthcare system. Such is the case in countries like Italy, where the number of COVID-19 patients has swelled to over 25,000 on Monday.