As large health-care institutions and hospitals struggle, smaller independent physician groups lack the financial reserves to weather the storm. Nonprofit agencies, such as private ambulance companies, are at even greater risk of failure, as they have maintained 24/7 readiness with increased costs, decreased revenue, and without municipal support. If restrictions are maintained for too long, a citizen who becomes ill may not have an ambulance nearby to respond, or a hospital nearby to care for him, or a doctor nearby to manage his long-term recovery, or a nonprofit community organization to fill in the gaps. This lack of access will persist long after the restrictions end, and may never fully return to pre-pandemic levels.
