Rep. Ruben Gallego to Gov. Ducey: What’s Your Plan to Address the Rise in COVID-19 Cases?
PHOENIX, AZ – Today Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) sent a letter to Governor Doug Ducey asking how he plans to address the recent rapid rise in COVID-19 cases and deaths in Arizona and criticizing the Governor's lack of response to the growing problem.
"I am concerned that your administration has recently failed to underscore the seriousness of the growing public health emergency that our state is experiencing with COVID-19," he wrote. "I urge you to do more to emphasize the seriousness of the situation to the people of Arizona and take this information into account as you make decisions that will greatly impact the number of lives we lose during the pandemic."
The letter highlights some of the most worrying recent statistics and opinions from health experts – noting that 1,556 people in Arizona tested positive for COVID-19 today, the second largest daily increase of confirmed cases. The percent of positive COVID-19 tests has more than doubled from approximately 5% a month ago to 12% last week, and the largest Arizona health system, Banner Health, has reached capacity for their external lung machines and is close to reaching their ICU bed capacity.
"Clearly, Arizona is going in the wrong direction," Rep. Gallego wrote to Gov. Ducey. "What does your administration plan to do about it?"
The full letter can be found here.