President Donald Trump attacked General Motors, alleging that the company promised to build thousands more breathing machines than it can deliver for coronavirus patients and that it wants too money for them.
As usual with “this” General Motors, things just never seem to work out. They said they were going to give us 40,000 much needed Ventilators, “very quickly”. Now they are saying it will only be 6000, in late April, and they want top dollar. Always a mess with Mary B. Invoke “P”.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 27, 2020
Trump threatened to “Invoke P”, the Defense Production Act, to force ventilator manufacturing. He also wrote that GM should reopen its factory in Lordstown, Ohio, or another facility to build ventilators.
His tweets came after Trump in a television interview cast doubt on medical experts and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo who have said they need thousands more ventilators than they have to handle the coronavirus.
Trump went on the attack even though General Motors announced it was working with Ventec Life Systems to build critical care ventilators at the GM Kokomo, Indiana auto plant.
The two companies were able to find material to build up to 200,000 ventilators and expect to begin delivery in April.
GM also said the company will produce FDA-cleared Level 1 surgical masks at the Warren, Michigan plant.
Production on those masks will begin next week and within two weeks ramp up to 50,000 masks per day, with the potential to increase to 100,000 per day.
