COMMONWEALTH Healthcare Corporation Chief Executive Officer Esther L. Muna on Friday said there had been no patients at the alternate care site or ACS at Kanoa Resort for the past few weeks.
She said the site is in a “warm” state, meaning that as of last Friday, it was closed and on standby in case of another surge of positive Covid-19 cases in the community.
Muna said site is not completely shut down, just closed unless there is a need for it to be reopened in the future.
She noted that completely shutting it down would not be the best decision, given that the CNMI must be kept prepared for the next Covid-19 variant, if one arises.
“We’re seeing zero hospitalizations over at the alternate care site. We’ve put it into a ‘warm’ state. ‘Warm’ state means that all the equipment will be there and we will ensure that preventive maintenance is done, so when there’s a need for it, or if there is a surge again, or for any reason whatsoever, we will be able to utilize it and return it to what we call ‘hot’ state,” she said.
After monitoring the Covid-19 trend throughout the nation, Muna said CHCC feels that the best and safe decision is to close the site for the time being.
“Right now, we’re seeing what’s happening in the U.S. and also what’s happening in Guam, and we’re seeing cases decline and a decline in hospitalizations, too. We feel that it is safe to close the ACS site, but, again, by putting it in a ‘warm’ state, we remain prepared because we just don’t know exactly what’s coming up next,” she said.
“There’s a lot of information coming in. We just want to make sure that we do this right. Putting the ACS in a warm state is the best decision for us, rather than completely shutting it down.”
Last week, the CHCC and the Governor’s Covid-19 task force announced that the CNMI is, according to guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in Covid-19 Community Level High.
But it is progressing toward Covid-19 Community Level Medium.
Correction
CHCC said enrolling in Medicaid through PE does not impact an individual’s eligibility for permanent resident status in the future.
Esther Muna
