Alaska health department recommends postponing non-urgent or elective procedures

Entrance to Anchorage’s Providence Hospital emergency room. (Photo by Josh Edge/Alaska Public Media)

Alaska’s health department asked Monday that providers postpone non-urgent or elective procedures for the next three months “to decrease the overall impact on the Alaska health care structure,” the department said in a statement.

The recommendation comes from U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams and the American College of Surgeons.

“Given Alaska’s distances and limited health care capacity, it is especially important to open acute health care beds for anticipated COVID-19 care,” the statement said. “The state of Alaska believes that by delaying non emergent procedures, individuals will receive optimal care.”

 

Alaska Public Media

Alaska Public Media is one of our partner stations in Anchorage. KTOO collaborates with partners across the state to cover important news and to share stories with our audiences.

Sign up for The Signal

Top Alaska stories delivered to your inbox every week

Site notifications
Update notification options
Subscribe to notifications