(Bloomberg) -- Michigan lawmakers wrote President Joe Biden to “urgently request” help in combating a Covid-19 outbreak that’s overwhelming the state’s health system.

U.S. Representatives Debbie Dingell, a Democrat, and Republican Fred Upton sent a letter Wednesday asking the president to provide treatments, including Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s antibody therapy, rapid-testing supplies and military medical personnel to support hospitals coping with near-record levels of Covid patients.

Michigan has the highest per capita rate of Covid cases in the U.S., with hospitalizations reaching 4,080 as of Wednesday, approaching a record set in April 2020. Coronavirus patients are overflowing into hospital hallways and conference rooms, while some health workers have been attacked by patients and family members irate over long waits for treatment and strict infection-control measures, according to the Michigan Health & Hospital Association.

“The situation in Michigan is rapidly getting worse and we need all hands on deck and any and all resources you are willing to provide,” Dingell and Upton wrote in the letter. “We are concerned about the impact of the spread of Covid-19 on the state’s ability to effectively address the current public health emergency if current trends continue.”

Michigan’s hospitals, with the help of Governor Gretchen Whitmer, have also asked for emergency staff from the Department of Defense, the state’s hospital association said Tuesday. Earlier this week, the department sent a team of health workers to help staff a hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is deploying the state’s National Guard to help fill gaps in skilled nursing.

 

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