Donald Trump Announces To Hold Back Nearly 10,000 Ventilators While Hospitals Are In Need

On March 31st, The US President Donald Trump announced to stop distributing ventilators upon the coming tough surge of coronavirus. Before, he once expressed his thoughts that getting back the medical equipment from states and redistributing would be more difficult. He stated:

"We also are holding back quite a bit. We have almost 10,000 ventilators that we have ready to go. We have to hold them back, because the surge is coming and it's coming pretty strong and we want to be able to immediately move it into place without going and taking it, so we're ready to go."

According to the number of infected cases in the US on April 1st, there are almost 190,000 people testing positive for coronavirus. 3,900 patients were found dead, which reported a higher number than in China (over 3,300 dead cases). New York has been the most severely affected state in the US with more than 75,000 infected cases and over 1,500 dead people.

The president continued his statement by warning that:

"I want every American to be prepared for the hard day's line ahead. We're gonna go for a very tough two-week."

He also added that the number of dead cases may rise to 240,000 people. He called COVID-19 a calamity, a deadly pandemic, however, Trump keeps on a brighter future and everyone in the US will feel that everything will 'suddenly' be better.

On the other hand, a doctor in New York City leaked a video online about the actual situation in this area. Dr. Colleen Smith from Elmhurst Hospital has shown out the status of critical equipment shortage, especially masks and ventilators.

She courageously provided the video to the New York Times. The doctor started filming from a packed ICU unit and confirmed that all the patients appearing there got infected with COVID-19. She went on saying with sadness:

"Today is kind of getting worse and worse. We had to get a refrigerated truck to store the bodies of patients who are dying. We are right now scrambling to try and get a few additional ventilators, or even CPAP machines. If we got CPAP machines, we could free up ventilators for patients who need them."

New York City is currently facing a big and serious problem of lacking ventilators. State's Governor Andrew Cuomo has requested to be supplied with tens of thousands more, nonetheless, the US President thought that was excessive and dismissed the request.

While the need is more than what reached in reality, Dr. Smith showed 5 new ventilators in the video and said:

"Five, five ventilators. Oh My God! You know, we now have these five vents. We probably - unless people die, I suspect we'll be back to needing to beg for ventilators again in another day or two."

According to her, the shortages are already in this place for workers on the front line. Meanwhile, she claimed that the leaders of the country and states say that "We are going to be fine" but from the perspective of doctors and patients, everything is actually not fine.

"I don't have the support that I need, and even just the materials that I need, physically, to take care of my patients. And it's America and we're supposed to be a first-world country."

The hospitals in NYC are struggling to treat coronavirus patients and protect themselves as well. Earlier on March 24, a 48-year-old nurse died of getting infected with the virus from patients at Mount Sinai Hospital. Dr. Smith also revealed that they don't have enough protective facilities, leading them to be exposed and exposed again. And she was wearing a mask which she had worn on March 27th.

"I don't really care if I get in trouble for speaking to the media. I want people to know that this is bad. People are dying, we don't have the tools that we need in the emergency department and in the hospital to take care of them and" - she starts to cry - "And it's really hard."

Watch her full video here: