Houston mayor: Hospitals will be overwhelmed ‘if we don’t get our hands around this virus quickly’

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner (D) pushed back on President Trump’s characterization of the coronavirus as “harmless” in 99 percent of cases, saying on Sunday the city’s hospitals could be overwhelmed “if we don’t get our hands around this virus quickly.”

“If we don’t get our hands around this virus quickly, our hospitals could be in serious, serious trouble,” Turner said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “The major problem is staffing … we can always provide additional beds, but we need the people, the nurses and everybody else in the medical profession to staff those beds.”

#COVID19 IN #HOUSTON: Mayor @SylvesterTurner tells @margbrennan the @HoustonTX “can always provide additional beds,” as #COVID19 cases rise, but warns that the “major problem is staffing.” pic.twitter.com/w34vHF4XGm

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 5, 2020

Asked by host Margaret Brennan whether any communities were being disproportionately affected by the city’s outbreak, Turner responded: “This virus is an equal opportunity abuser [but] it’s having a disproportionate impact on people of color and right now especially within the Hispanic community,” noting that he had also seen cases such as “a young woman in her 20s with no underlying medical condition” who died from the virus.

NEWS: In @HoustonTX #COVID19 is affecting minority communities the most – “particularly in the #Hispanic community,” @SylvesterTurner tells @margbrenan pic.twitter.com/QBlDRlQcHu

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 5, 2020

{mosads}“At the end of April, the beginning of May, our numbers were relatively low … I said then [Texas was] reopening too quickly, too fast,” Turner added.

Texas was one of the first states to begin the reopening process, with Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in some cases overruling local officials on restrictions tighter than those of the state.

Turner warned not only of the increase in cases, but the increasing rate of positive tests.

“A month ago, one in 10 tested positive, today we’re looking at almost like 1 in 4,” he said.