ICU Bed Capacity In All 50 U.S. States Compared [Infographic]

As more and more U.S. states reopen, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, has warned of the possible consequences of easing restrictions too early. While testifying remotely before the Senate last week, Fauci said that “there is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak that you might not be able to control. Not only leading to some suffering and death, but it could even set you back on the road to get economic recovery”. At that time, the number of U.S. deaths from COVID-19 stood at approximately 80,000 and Fauci warned that the true figure was likely higher. As of May 18 at 1:30am EDT, the official number had increased to just under 90,000.

If Fauci’s warnings are correct and a premature reopening sends the coronavirus spiraling out of control, hospitals could quickly find themselves overwhelmed, something that has already happened not just in Italy and Spain but also in New York. When it comes to critical care infrastructure, some states are better positioned than others, according to data published by the Kaiser Family Foundation focusing on health care provider capacity. It shows that the U.S. had 85,247 coronary, trauma, surgical, burn, and general ICU beds in community and non-Federal hospitals in 2018. That equates to 2.7 ICU beds per 10,000 of the population.

At state level, Alabama had 3.9 ICU beds per 10,000 of its inhabitants, the most in the country. North Dakota came second with 3.8 while Nevada and West Virginia followed with 3.7 each. Vermont and Hawaii are at the opposite end of the scale and had the lowest ICU bed capacity in the U.S. with 1.6 per 10,000 inhabitants. Alaska, South Dakota and Wyoming, states that have seen some of the lowest infection rates in the country so far, are also amongst the ones with the lowest ICU bed capacity with 1.8 per 10,000 inhabitants. As the reopening process accelerates, a recent Morning Consult poll found that half of voters feel the U.S. is moving too quickly to reopen the economy.

*Click below to enlarge (charted by Statista)