Governor Newson announced Monday that California is loaning 500 ventilators to states with a more urgent need for them amid the pandemic.
As the numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases continue to reach an all-time high, states like New York are experiencing extreme supply shortages. Over the weekend Oregon and Washington announced plans to send a total of 540 ventilators the Strategic National Stockpile, and this morning, Gov. Newsom announced that California will follow suit.
Newsom declared that loaning 500 ventilators to the U.S. Stockpile will “help our fellow Americans in New York and across the country who are being impacted the hardest right now by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
CA will continue to prepare and secure the equipment we need to keep our fellow Californians healthy while standing with other states in their moments of need.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) April 6, 2020
The state continues to prepare for a surge of COVID-19 cases having already secured additional medical facilities like the USNS Mercy hospital ship as well as transforming the Los Angeles Convention Center into a makeshift field hospital. The launch of California’s new Health Corps has seen extreme support, having received over 25,000 medical volunteers within its first 24 hours of commencing.
According to CBS, Newsom is currently sourcing additional ventilators to have on-hand when cases surge in California with an estimate to reach an apex in mid to late May. As of right now Virgin Orbit, Tesla, and GM are working on ventilator production to assist the state.
Featured photo: Shutterstock