A cascade of Omicron-driven shortages puts U.S. hospitals in a bind

The Covid-19 medications are supposed to keep people out of the hospital — and to infectious disease doctor Ogechika Alozie, these patients were perfect candidates.

One was a vaccinated elderly man who’d tested positive for Covid after cold-like symptoms began spreading through his family. But his family couldn’t find him an open slot for an infusion of monoclonal antibodies. His granddaughter, Krystal Tejeda, called and called. “I couldn’t get an answer from anybody. Mailbox full, mailbox full,” she said. He was sent home after his first two ER visits. On the third, he was admitted, his skin going purple.