Burns: PA manufacturing could alleviate ventilator shortage, save lives from coronavirus
Lawmaker urges governor, his action team to investigate possibilities
Rep. Frank Burns March 18, 2020
EBENSBURG, March 18 -- Amid growing warnings that the United States faces a profound shortage of ventilators to treat seriously ill coronavirus patients, state Rep. Frank Burns, D Cambria, is calling on Gov. Tom Wolf and his Action Team to marshal Pennsylvania’s manufacturing might to help build the life-saving devices.
Burns said the situation is dire, as only 23 ventilator facilities exist statewide, housing about 700 beds. He said because the coronavirus can strike the respiratory system, making elderly patients particularly vulnerable to life-threatening complications, ramped-up ventilator production is essential.
“The conversation nobody wants to have centers on what if there aren’t enough ventilators in the state to deal with the coronavirus spread? If there’s a severe shortage of ventilators as anticipated, then medical professionals will have to make critical decisions on which patients are a priority to live based on age, pre-existing conditions and life expectancy,” Burns said. “God help us all if this happens.”
Burns said this is already the case in Italy, where more than 24,000 confirmed coronavirus patients have created a shortage of ventilators in hospitals, forcing healthcare providers to make hard decisions on who gets a ventilator – decisions that give priority to younger, healthier people who have a better chance of survival.
Burns added that in Great Britain, officials are asking automobile makers Ford and Rolls Royce to use their manufacturing capability and expertise to produce ventilators to deal with that nation’s own shortage of the devices.
Given that Pennsylvania has a diverse and skilled manufacturing sector, Burns believes it’s worthwhile to see if it could be mobilized to supply additional life-saving ventilators to alleviate any shortage.
“The time to act is now,” Burns said. “We cannot sit idly by, assuming there will be enough ventilators down the road. We need to turn over every stone to find ways to prevent deaths. The governor’s Action Team has the connections to find out if our manufacturing sector can contribute to helping save lives.”