Another month of data from industry analysts Strata (we have to use private data for 2019 comps because the government data sets all start in 2020) show that we have still not reached 2019 volumes in inpatient admission or emergency visits in even a single month since the pandemic started.

And rather than return to normal… volumes are even lower in 2022 than the record lows set in 2021. “If there is a theme for 2022, it’s that inpatient volumes are down,” they report.

The health care system needs to return to normalcy. Stop feeding the media fear hype headlines about being overwhelmed (they never were), ditch the masks, and welcome patients back without undue fear or anxiety – before the backlog of untreated conditions gets even worse. Delayed diagnosis and treatment could kill tens of thousands more Americans in the next few years.