Dr. Murdock said: > The effect of the first Safer at Home on our local economy and our local health care system has been devastating. I saw firsthand how this order was adversely impacting people with medical needs. The hospital system shut down 16 primary care clinics. Think of that, 16 CLINICS COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN. More recently the system announced numerous additional furloughs and cut work hours for nurses and support staff. All this to hopefully avoid the total financial collapse of our local health care system. This is not isolated to our region. These events are happening all over the country. Millions of healthcare workers are effected. > Meanwhile, health care within our community has suffered. The shutdown of clinics has reduced access to healthcare. People are afraid to come into our office or the emergency room. Cancers are not being detected or operated on, dental care is not being provided, severe orthopedic issues are not being addressed, and some specialties–such as ENT, dermatology, chiropractic care, and some surgical specialties–are being decimated. It became increasingly clear that the health care system was near collapse. This was not due to the virus overwhelming the system, but due to a government-imposed restriction on “nonessential” services. This restriction has caused horrific damage to patient care. I certainly felt, as did many others within our community, that the drastic reduction in health care was worse than the minimal effect we were seeing from the virus. Interestingly, publications in prestigious medical journals are now attesting to this fact. A poor economy has morbidity and lethality too.