Page 3 - Walter Samuelson Children News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

The U.S.' pediatric bed shortage is a byproduct of financial decisions made by hospitals to shutter children’s wards in favor of adult care.

Because of poor reimbursement rates and the change from COVID, many hospitals and pediatric hospitals were not equipped to take on the tripledemic of flu, RSV and COVID.

A major factor in the bed shortage is a years-long trend among hospitals of eliminating pediatric units, which tend to be less profitable than adult units.

The U.S. is experiencing an unusual spate of childhood RSV infections. But the critical shortage of beds to treat ailing children stems from structural problems in pediatric care that have been brewing for years.

The dire shortage of pediatric hospital beds plaguing the nation this fall is a byproduct of financial decisions made by hospitals over the past decade, as they shuttered children's wards, which often operate in the red, and expanded the number of beds available for more profitable endeavors like joint replacements and cancer care.