DENVER — COVID-19 hospitalizations in Colorado increased 38% in the past week. According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), the number of patients with the virus doubled, with hospitals seeing up to 108 patients each day.
With the rise in cases, CDPHE COVID-19 Incident Commander Scott Bookman is doubling down the vaccine's importance.
"Making sure you stay up-to-date on your vaccine continues to be the most important tool that we have," Bookman said.
On top of that, Bookman insists that COVID-19 treatments are very effective, whether you are vaccinated or not.
"Paxlovid is an oral antiviral. It reduces risk of hospitalization by 90% if taken early in the course of the illness," Bookman said. "Remdesivir is still effective, and it is still certainly recommended."
Those oral antivirals are a few of many treatments Bookman says are available to everyone, even if you're not insured.
"The vast majority of this is either covered by health insurance or covered by federal programs," he said.
For easy access, visit covid19.colorado.gov, then scroll down and click the tab under "Treatments for COVID-19."
When directed to the new page, click "Learn more about getting treatment." There, you will have access to maps that show where different types of treatments are located, including a link to the Test to Treat program, which is a federal program that provides COVID-19 medication.