Colorado emergency management officials announced Tuesday that the medical facility set up in Denver’s Colorado Convention Center last spring will be decommissioned, having served zero patients.
“The state’s hospital capacity is expected to meet the healthcare needs of COVID-19 as shown by modeling data and information from hospital partners,” the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management announced on Twitter.
Today, January 19, the Unified Coordination Center began steps to decommission the alternative care site at the Colorado Convention Center. The site is expected to be turned back over to Denver County by March 25, 2021. #COVID19Colorado pic.twitter.com/FLQwcuk8Li
— CO – Emergency Mgmt (@COEmergency) January 19, 2021
Two other emergency sites — in Pueblo and in Westminster — will remain open. The Colorado Convention Center is expected to be returned to Denver’s care by late March.
The state started transitioning the convention center to a temporary medical facility in April, with a capacity of up to 2,000 beds, though that preparation took weeks longer than expected. And while the convention center never hosted a single patient, it “served as an essential insurance policy for Colorado,” said Micki Trost, communications director for the state’s emergency management division.
The convention center was meant to host patients who suffered lighter coronavirus symptoms, so that hospital beds could be reserved for those who might need immediate and specialized medical care, Michael Willis with the agency told The Denver Post in late November.
“They’re for the wellest of the sick,” Willis said.
The state’s hospital capacity is expected to meet the healthcare needs of COVID19 as shown by modeling data and information from hospital partners. The Tier 2.5 sites at St. Anthony’s 84th Avenue and St. Mary Corwin remain in place.
— CO – Emergency Mgmt (@COEmergency) January 19, 2021
It wasn’t immediately clear how much the state spent to turn the convention center into an emergency medical site — and keep it that way for months. Another one in Loveland was previously shut down and dismantled. The remaining emergency sites, St. Anthony’s in Westminster and St. Mary Corwin in Pueblo, have a maximum capacity of 78 and 120 beds, respectively, Willis said.
While the total number of COVID-19 cases in Colorado is decreasing, hospitalizations haven’t, puzzling public health experts. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment reported 12,450 new cases last week, the lowest weekly total since late October.
Fewer people are now dying each day on average and the percentage of tests returning with positive results is also decreasing, the state health department reported.
