Freeman President/CEO gives Friday update on COVID-19

Freeman Hospital in Joplin held its weekly news conference today.

The subject was COVID-19.

President/CEO Paula Baker says the struggle continues.

“With the new variant we are seeing patients that are much younger than we have experienced before,” Baker says.

“Patients are sicker,” she continues. “We have more patients on ventilators. We are having more deaths. We are averaging At Freeman in the last two weeks about a death a day.”

Meanwhile, at Mercy-Joplin across town, officials say 64 patients are admitted with COVID-19.24 of those are on ventilators.

Baker says the best way to avoid getting the virus or to lessen its severity is to get the COVID-19 shot.