President Donald Trump failed to secure enough masks for patients and health care workers on the frontlines of fighting this pandemic.
Today, he heads to Arizona to tour the Honeywell mask production assembly line in an attempt to praise himself for his leadership — but the reality is that health care workers across the country are still facing massive shortages of masks and other protective equipment because of Trump’s refusal to prepare for the crisis.
Ahead of his tour, see below for the ways Trump’s failed leadership created and exacerbated the shortages:
Three Months Into The Crisis and Mask Shortages For Health Care Workers Still Persist
- NPR: Nurses Left Vulnerable To COVID-19: ‘We’re Not Martyrs Sacrificing Our Lives’. [NPR, 5/2/20]
- The Guardian: Coronavirus Mask Guidance Is Endangering US Health Workers, Experts Say. [The Guardian, 4/28/20]
- Boston Globe: Masks State Distributed Were Deficient, Tests Show, Sparking Concerns Among Police. [Boston Globe, 4/29/20]
- Wall Street Journal: Low-Quality Masks Infiltrate U.S. Coronavirus Supply [Wall Street Journal, 5/4/20]
- Business Insider: The US Has Imported Millions Of Low-Quality Masks That Don’t Block Virus Particles Enough, Putting Lives At Risk. [Business Insider, 5/4/20]
- CBS: Nurses Holding May Day Protests Nationwide Demanding PPE, Union Says. [CBS, 5/1/20]
- Georgia Health News: New Survey Of Georgia Nurses Finds Lingering Supply Problems And Stress. [Georgia Health News, 4/28/20]
- American Nurses Association: Survey: Nurses Fear Going To Work Due To Lack Of Protection From Virus More Than 32k Nurses Share Experience From The Front Lines. [American Nurses Association, Press Release, 4/24/20]
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: ‘We Are Scared For Our Lives’: At Least 17% Of Wisconsin Coronavirus Cases Are Health Care Employees. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/24/20]
How Trump Dropped The Ball On Preparing Hospitals With Protective Equipment, Including Masks
Ignored Warnings
- Trump ignored a 69 page National Security Council playbook that said the Administration should have begun procuring personal protective equipment at least four months ago.
Acted Too Late
- Federal contract records show that Trump waited until mid-March — after hospitals were already out of N95 masks and ventilators — to start bulk ordering crucial medical supplies.
- Trump waited months before actually using his existing authority to increase the production of masks — it was only in April, after numerous health experts called for him to do so, that Trump finally invoked the Defense Production Act (DPA) to increase the production of masks.
Allowed PPE To Be Sent Overseas
- On February 7th, the same day the WHO warned about a shortage of medical supplies, Trump allowed State Department planes to fly 8 tons of U.S. medical supplies to China.
- For three months, Trump allowed US medical supplies to be exported to other countries as our national stockpile became By March 11, twenty-four other governments had placed restrictions preventing masks and ventilators from leaving their borders.
Sought Deep Cuts To Efforts To Build The PPE Stockpile
- Trump cut the budget request to buy respirator masks and other supplies for the national stockpile by 75%. On February 5, HHS Secretary Alex Azar requested $2 billion — but Trump slashed that to only $500 million.