Utah Governor Gary Herbert has declared a state of emergency and implemented a set of guidelines, including a mask mandate, as COVID-19 infections surge.

The state has seen more than 2,000 news cases per day for the last week and Greg Bell, president and CEO of the Utah Hospital Association said the situation is "unsustainable." 

"We've long been urging the governor to make the wearing of masks mandatory. That's been done more on a local level and hasn't hitherto been needed in rural areas, but right now, we're in it deep and we have to have some intervention," Bell told Cheddar.

While mask wearing has become a political debate, particularly in Republican-led states, Bell said Utah's legislative leadership has been "by-and-large on board."

"We're seeing two-thirds of the state or more saying 'Look it's time we got absolutely serious about this.' It can't just be a few of us. It's got to be all of us, or it's not going to make a difference," he continued.

As the number of hospitalizations in Utah continues to rise, a very real concern for many patients — and those on the fence about admitting themselves to a hospital — are the growing costs of healthcare and emergency room visits. 

Yesterday's U.S. Supreme Court hearing seemed to suggest it is likely to allow the Affordable Care Act to continue to exist, even without the controversial individual mandate. However, many still question why healthcare is so expensive.

President Trump, through executive order, required medical price transparency and recently finalized a rule that requires insurance companies to disclose healthcare price points so patients can make more informed decisions before seeking medical care. 

Bell and the Utah Hospital Association are fighting against that executive order, which is set to begin rolling out January 1, 2021.

"Hospital pricing is way too complex. In a way it's indefensible, but it's also a system that's been foisted on us by the federal government and the insurance companies," he told Cheddar.

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