Hospitals face severe shortage of ventilators amid COVID-19 outbreak
Thousands of ventilators from the U.S. stockpile are not operational, reports say; CEO of American Association for Respiratory Care, Tom Kallstrom weighs in on ‘America’s Newsroom.’
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Washington state will return more than 400 of the 500 ventilators it received from the federal government so they can be used in New York and other states fighting on the front lines of the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Jay Inslee announced Sunday.
The state can afford to help others hit harder with the COVID-19 pandemic after data showed a strict statewide stay-at-home order and weeks of social distancing slowed rates of infections and deaths in Washington, the Democrat governor said.
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"I’ve said many times over the last few weeks: We are in this together,” Inslee said. “This should guide all of our actions at an individual and state level in the coming days and weeks."
While the ventilators are not powerful enough to treat COVID-19 patients, they can be used for other patients to free up stronger ventilators, state officials said.
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The virus has exploded in New York, where it has infected 123,160 people, killing 4,159 of them as of Monday. Gov. Andrew Cuomo over the weekend repeated his state’s need for more ventilators even as New York recorded its first daily drop in deaths.
In Washington, there have been 7,984 cases and 343 deaths. Inslee has earned praise from the White House coronavirus task force for his state’s early actions to limit the virus’ spread, which health experts say prevented spikes in cases and deaths seen in New York and other states.
Soldiers take part in a ventilator training session at the site of a military field hospital Sunday at the CenturyLink Field Event Center in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Retired Vice Adm. Raquel Bono, director of the state’s COVID-19 Health System Response Management, said Inslee's mitigation efforts have resulted in fewer infections and allowed the state to help others on the front lines.
“Thanks to the mitigation efforts the governor has put in place and the cooperation of Washingtonians, we have seen fewer infections in our communities than anticipated," she said. "Our current status allows us to help others who have a more immediate need.”
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Washington last month received 500 ventilators after requesting 1,000 from the Strategic National Stockpile. The state has also purchased more than 750 ventilators, which are expected to arrive over the next several weeks, Inslee’s office said.
Washington’s gesture comes a day after Oregon announced it was sending New York 140 ventilators.
Inslee has called on Washingtonians to continue to stay home, wash hands and maintain physical distancing as those measures appeared to have helped the state slow the rates of infection. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
While Washington appears to have successfully flattened the curve, Inslee remains concerned over his state’s continued success against the virus, calling on Washingtonians to do their part in maintaining social distancing, staying home and washing their hands.
Inslee on Sunday also criticized the federal government’s response to the pandemic on “Meet the Press,” his latest jab at President Trump.
“This is ludicrous that we do not have a national effort in this,” Inslee said. “I mean, the surgeon general alluded to Pearl Harbor. Can you imagine if Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, ‘I’ll be right behind you, Connecticut. Good luck building those battleships.'”
Inslee called for a national stay-at-home order instead of states rolling out their own, often piecemeal, orders. As of Saturday, only eight states had yet to issue stay-at-home orders, including Arkansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, South Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming.
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“Even if Washington gets on top of this fully, if another state doesn’t, it can come back and come across our borders two months from now,” Inslee said.
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