On the last Wednesday of 2021, nearly 20,000 new Covid cases (including positive antigen tests) were reported in Georgia as new daily state records are set. On the state’s virus map, Metro Atlanta was covered in a deep, dangerous red color, indicating high rates of infection. People tried to get Covid tests and many were forced to rethink their New Years plans. Six hospital systems in the greater Atlanta area jointly announced Wednesday that the number of Covid hospital admissions has increased 100 to 200 percent in the past eight days, with the vast majority of inpatients remaining unvaccinated.
Almost two years after the pandemic, Covid continued to dominate the headlines. . . and it dominates our list of Top 10 Georgia Health Care Stories of 2021.
Vaccines became a key weapon. In keeping with the astounding pace of Covid vaccine development, drug manufacturers produced and shipped millions of doses to the nation in 2021. Georgians lined up for vaccinations from the start, and research showed that vaccinated people had a much better chance of avoiding hospitalization and death. But by the end of the year, just over 50 percent of Georgians were fully vaccinated, although booster vaccinations were given to boost immunity.
State map of the Covid cases December 29th.
The virus has adapted. Variants of Covid emerged after the first few months of the pandemic, highlighting the complexity of the disease. Georgia suffered a fatal surge this year powered by the Delta variant. When that subsided, a new variant, Omicron, appeared towards the end of the year. Omicron helped keep a daily record of reported Covid cases in both the US and Georgia. The number of virus patients rose again in hospitals.
Covid caused a further shortage of skilled workers in the healthcare sector. Nursing staff in hospitals declined as nurses moved into less hazardous work environments and even retired. Hospitals began offering unprecedented rewards to attract nurses. Covid has also resulted in a shortage of caregivers for people with disabilities who receive home care. And state psychiatric hospitals faced an alarming shortage of staff.
Kemp waivers got into trouble. After the Biden administration took office, the federal Medicare and Medicaid Services Centers began questioning job requirements in Governor Brian Kemp’s proposal to increase Medicaid enrollment in Georgia. Then, just before Christmas, the agency rejected these admission restrictions. Meanwhile, CMS was also asking tough questions about the GOP governor’s other waiver motion to replace healthcare.gov with an insurance portal privately run by insurers and brokers.
Registration on the ACA marketplace increased by leaps and bounds. Federal health officials announced a record registration in pro-government marketplaces where people can buy health insurance. That high figure, fueled in part by skyrocketing filings in Georgia and the 11 other states that Medicaid failed to expand under the Affordable Care Act. Georgia reported a record 653,000 filings as the number of insurance options increased, helped by more help from ACA advisors (“Navigators”) and increased discounts for some marketplace customers.
Abrams entered the gubernatorial race. Democrat Stacey Abrams, who narrowly lost to Republican Brian Kemp in 2018, announced that she would run for governor again in 2022, which could be a central theme in the competition.
Expired contracts and frustrated customers. More contracts between giant insurers and hospital systems across the country were terminated without a renewal agreement, and those disruptions also played out in Georgia. Wellstar’s contract with UnitedHealthcare ended in October, and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield was en route to part ways with Northside Hospital on January 1.
The former Stewart Webster Hospital
The rural health problems persisted. Additional Covid funding helped prevent rural hospitals from closing across the country, but there have been many pockets in Georgia where medical services have remained scarce. Some communities began building stand-alone rural emergency hospitals to fill in the holes left by shuttered hospitals.
Floyd Medical Center
Hospital consolidation has resumed. Piedmont Healthcare added four Georgia hospitals and bought them from HCA. Piedmont also began to approach the University Hospital in Augusta. Meanwhile, Atrium Health in Rome acquired the Floyd Medical Center, while AdventHealth acquired the Redmond Regional Medical Center. Such moves have given bargaining power to hospital systems that are demanding higher reimbursements from health insurers.
Leaded cinder lumps in the Westside Atlanta Yard
EPA expanded probe to lead in Atlanta soil. The federal EPA expanded its investigation of much of the low-income English Avenue neighborhood to include lead in the ground. Meanwhile, a Georgia House study committee has made a number of recommendations aimed at strengthening state laws to protect people from lead poisoning.
Fear of monkey pox plagued Georgia. Public health officials reported that 43 people in Georgia were screened for monkey pox in July. They had been exposed to a passenger infected with the rare disease when the person flew from Nigeria to Atlanta and then to Dallas. It turned out that none of the Georgians were infected. Monkeypox is derived from a variety of wildlife, not just monkeys, and can be transmitted if a person comes in contact with the virus from an infected animal, person, or contaminated materials.