HONOLULU — Lt. Gov. Josh Green, who works as an emergency room doctor on the Big Island, says a minority of unvaccinated people are pushing the state toward another lockdown.
“I say we are two to four weeks at this rate from seeing major adjustments in what we’re able to do,” Green said.
“It’s a small minority that is otherwise condemning society to a lockdown and potentially large-scale death,” Green added. “No one wants to close down businesses, no one wants to put in curfews, no one wants to curtail regular life or schools — but we have to keep people alive.”
Green said all ICU beds at the Hilo hospital are full — more than half with COVID-19 patients — and as of Sunday 58 of the 68 ICU units at Honolulu’s Queen’s Hospital were occupied, Hawaii News Now reported.
In total, Green said 300 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 and of those, at least 270 are unvaccinated.
Protesters showed up outside Green’s condo over the weekend.
“I’m probably going to be taking care of them in the hospital with my colleagues because they’re going to catch COVID,” Green said. “(T)hose very individuals are condemning everyone in society to a much larger lockdown.”