New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Sunday that the ventilators promised to be made by Tesla CEO Elon Musk may not arrive in time for the COVID-19 pandemic. New York has emerged as the epicenter of the disease and has reported over 4,000 deaths and 122,000 cases.
"The problem with ventilator construction is the supply chain, that's General Motors, that's Ford, that's Elon Musk. I don't care how big and how powerful," Governor Cuomo said at the daily press briefing.
Does not work within the expected time-frame
"Their (Musk's) time-frame, frankly, does not work for our immediate apex, because whether we're talking two days or 10 days, you are not going to make ventilators at that time," Cuomo told the media. He continued to defend his plan to stockpile what ventilators as well as other resources the country has.
"There is no other way to do that. I can't say to a hospital, 'I will send you all the supplies you need, I will send you all the ventilators you need.' We don't have them," said the New York Governor. Cuomo announced that for the first time in days, the state has seen fewer deaths.
Too early to say if death rate will reduce
"There's something a little bit different in the data today," Cuomo said, as state officials reported 594 new deaths, down from 630 on Saturday. The governor stressed it was still too early to tell what that means for the long term.
New York City Hospitals recently shared an image on Twitter thanking Musk and Tesla for delivering 40 ventilators to Elmhurst Hospital in Queens. Musk announced that he and his companies have access to additional FDA-approved ventilators that can be shipped free of cost to hospitals within regions where the electric car maker delivers.
(With inputs from agencies)
