HHC: COVID-19 numbers continue to rise but cases could level off in several weeks

Photo | HBJ File Hartford HealthCare flagship Hartford Hospital’s Seymour Street campus.

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By Robert Storace

Hartford HealthCare doctors said Wednesday afternoon that their number of patients with COVID-19 has increased, but they expect to see the recent surge in cases level off in the next several weeks.

Ajay Kumar, Hartford HealthCare’s chief clinical officer, said that, as of Wednesday, HHCs seven hospitals had 535 COVID-19 patients, including 71 in an ICU and 50 who are intubated and need the support of a ventilator. No one who is intubated has received the booster, Kumar said.

Of the 535 patients in the hospital system with COVID-19, 221 are located at Hartford Hospital.

The current number of HHC COVID-19 patients is far outpacing the previous peak of 425 patients recorded in April 2020.

According to the office of Gov. Ned Lamont, the state’s COVID-19 positivity rate as of Tuesday afternoon stood at 23.85% with hospitalizations statewide at 1,920, up 31 from the day before.

Dimitris Bertsimas, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was a special guest joining the HHC medical team at Wednesday’s 35-minute press briefing.

Bertsimas, who has developed a predictive model that tracks community spread of the virus, said his data suggest that the COVID-19 numbers in the state will plateau in about three weeks.

“The omicron variant, as everyone knows, is quite contagious, far more than any other variant,” Bertsimas said, adding that data show boosters play a material effect in avoiding a serious health situation.

One reporter asked the HHC medical team for comment on the recent lawsuit that St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center filed against Hartford HealthCare.

The lawsuit alleges HHC and its subsidiaries have tried to create a monopoly on hospital services by acquiring physician networks.

Kumar told reporters that the hospital system is “reviewing the complaint and the complaint is without merit.” He did not elaborate further.