3 ms·

Flu season is accounted for in normal hospital beds and other capacity planning. A sudden huge surge in need for ICU care is not accounted for.

• cm2187 7y ago
  But my point is that surely these additional 60,000 people (and probably many more who recovered) must have gone through ICU.
  • MLpractitioner 7y ago
    Not necessarily, and maybe they didn't need artificial ventilation which is the big deal here.
    • gpderetta 7y ago
      Also, flu didn't go away. covid-19 is in addition to the stress to the health system caused by flu (and all other diseases) and in a very short time.
      • jonplackett 7y ago
        and also, even at the very lowest end, COVID-19's death rate is an order of magnitude more than Flu (0.1% vs 1%)