U.S. Navy will deploy 20 nurses and doctors to Bellin Hospital to help with COVID response

GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — A team of military personnel will deploy to Green Bay to support Bellin Hospital in its response to COVID-19, according to a statement from the military.

A press release from U.S. Army North (Fifth Army) states the deployment comes at the request of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Military officials say 40 military medical personnel will deploy in two new teams – one 20-person team to Indiana, and one 20-person team to Wisconsin – to support civilian healthcare workers treating COVID-19 patients.

Bellin Health released the following statement Tuesday afternoon:

"While we are incredibly grateful to be receiving federal assistance, the fact that we need to accept it should send a clear message to the public that we are at a critical crossroads for local healthcare. We must work together to stop the spread of COVID and ensure our hospitals and health systems can continue to provide high-quality care for all who need it. We cannot do it alone."

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and Wisconsin DHS confirmed Tuesday the 20-person team from the U.S. Navy is coming and say the assistance is critical for supporting hospitals and health care systems that are at or nearly at capacity.

In Wisconsin, a 20-person team from the U.S. Navy will support Bellin Hospital in Green Bay. In Indiana, a 20-person team from the U.S. Navy will support Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. This is an alternative to opening a field hospital, said Karen Timberlake, DHS Secretary-Designee. The latest seven-day average of new confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin is 3,315, nearly double the number two months ago, according to DHS. As of December 17th, there were 1,664 Wisconsinites hospitalized with COVID-19 and 423 of them were in the intensive care unit, which is an increase of 30 in one week, and 258 since December 1st.

“While we were very fortunate to have the field hospital and certainly did have numbers of patients need to use it last spring, what we're finding is that certainly patients prefer to receive care as close to home as possible," said Timberlake. “The strategy that we are working on right now with hospitals and with long term care partners all across our state is to expand capacity by adding staff in a more regional fashion.”

The military medical personnel includes nurses, respiratory therapists and medical doctors, said O'Donnell.

“It’s unfortunate that these teams have been called back in," said Martin O'Donnell, Public Affairs Director for U.S. Army North. "But they have the right specialities to deal with COVID and to support the hospitals.”

The joint Department of Defense effort includes ten other teams currently working in five states – two in Colorado, three in Michigan, two in Minnesota, one in Montana, and two in New Mexico. U.S. Army North, under U.S. Northern Command’s oversight, provides an operational command of the teams, said O'Donnell.

Bellin Health is still waiting to receive information on the specific skills set of the medical staff, but the team should arrive next week and will be getting to work by New Year's Eve, said O'Donnell.