Washington (CNN) Many pundits and politicians have been asking why the US military isn't doing more to help combat the spread of coronavirus in the United States. There are 51 military hospitals compared to some 6,000 civilian hospitals nationwide, according to one US defense official, meaning the US military has only about 1% of the nation's hospital capacity. Military hospitals admit many fewer patients per year than do civilian hospitals. While the US military does also have 424 medical clinics, hospital ships such as the USNS Comfort, and the ability to construct field hospitals, those facilities are not ideal for treating persons in isolation care who must be quarantined. Hospital ships, for example, treat their patients in open bays.

Source: CNN March 15, 2020 17:26 UTC