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Trump says the US will obtain 100,000 ventilators in next 100 days

President Donald Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence, takes questions from reporters during a Coronavirus Task Force update Feb. 29
Myles Cullen / White Hous
President Donald Trump, joined by Vice President Mike Pence, takes questions from reporters during a Coronavirus Task Force update Feb. 29

(CNN) https://livestream.com/accounts/25723746/events/8522569/videos/203608798 President Trump said his administration would procure 100,000 ventilators in the next 100 days, amid fears that parts of the US are facing a looming shortage of the life-saving devices.

The President said the administration would facilitate the production or acquisition through other means of “100,000 additional units” of ventilators over that 100-day period.

“We delivered thousands, as you know, to New York, and they didn’t know they got them, and we also had thousands put in a warehouse and that was also for New York,” Trump said. “So we have to make sure that when we deliver things, they get distributed."

Some context: Speaking to CNN’s Shimon Prokupecz on Friday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo disputed the suggestion by Trump that the ventilators were sitting in storage needlessly.

"So the point is, 'well they're in a stockpile, you must not need them' is just ignorant -- of course you don't need them today!" Cuomo told CNN. "You need them when you hit the apex, which is 30,000. We're not there yet."

Earlier Friday, the President had tweeted: “Thousand of Federal Government (delivered) Ventilators found in New York storage. N.Y. must distribute NOW!”

Article Topic Follows: Coronavirus

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