The direct losses nationally from COVID-19—over 180,000 mothers, fathers, grandparents, sisters, brothers, children and friends gone—are devastating. Those who died from the virus and their families are not the only ones to suffer from the poor national response to the pandemic, though. We are now seeing the second wave of death and morbidity in our hospital—but not from COVID-19 itself, where our case numbers have been in the single digits to low teens for several months. This next wave of is from delayed care because of the prolonged effects of the virus on our troubled health care system.
COVID-19 is currently the third leading cause of death in the U.S. But that means there are two scourges that are still causing even more morbidity and mortality: heart disease (the number one killer in America) and cancer (number two). Over the summer, in my work as a hospital-based geriatrician, I have managed multiple deaths from end-stage heart failure, and made several new cancer diagnoses in more advanced stages of disease with limited treatment options. The amount of death and suffering I’ve witnessed this summer, not having worked directly with COVID-19 patients in months, is amongst the worst I’ve seen in my entire medical career.
A Washington Post investigation found that there were 8,300 more deaths from heart disease in five states (New York, led by hard-hit New York City; Massachusetts; New Jersey; Michigan; and Illinois) between March and May, about 27 percent higher than would be predicted from previous years. New York City alone saw more than 4,700 excess deaths from heart disease. As hospitals in New York City were overwhelmed with COVID-19, they were unable to care for anyone else. This included people suffering from heart failure, complications of cancer or possibly undiagnosed cancer, and other conditions. There were simply no hospital beds in the entire city....
...When the pandemic is over, it will be clear that the hundreds of thousands of deaths from COVID-19 will be just the tip of the iceberg. In the space we were given between stimulus and response, collectively America did nothing, and instead of growth and freedom, we will have witnessed the suffering and death of millions of Americans. However, another space has now opened up: Is an empty hospital bed $3,000 in profit lost that day, or instead a place available to provide lifesaving care to a person in need? We have the power to choose our response at the ballot box.
