Did no one bother to actually read the article? It says that there can potentially be a shortage but that there isn't currently.

The fed has 13000 and the military an extra 2000. It currently seems more hamstrung by bureaucracy or lack of information. Hospitals have to request their state governments which have to then request them from the federal government. Only one state has requested them so far.

"“We have received, so far, only, I think, one request for just several ventilators,” he said. In contrast to Fauci’s disclosure that the stockpile contains nearly 13,000, Azar said the number was not disclosed for national security reasons."

For some context, we might have a shortage of over 100,000 ventilators in the US if we fail to flatten the curve (or over a million if we don't take any precautions).

Some numbers for a conservative estimate where only low-risk people are infected: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22590692

If we really don't flatten the curve, then the estimates are over 400,000 shortage.

The problem is that, if you wait to act until the shortage is actually upon you, you’ll act too late. These things take time to make and distribute. You have to act before the tidal wave hits if you want to have them in place when it does.

The first problem to solve is information and distribution. Get organized quickly first so that hospitals know that they can request them and that their requests are quickly met.

This double request structure is stupid.

Unless the US central bank is hoarding ventilators, "the feds" have 13000, not "the fed".

Read article and assumed the hospitals aren't anticipating the need for whatever their reasons are. We just barely have enough vents in hospitals as is and they are in use.

>>Did no one bother to actually read the article? It says that there can potentially be a shortage but that there isn't currently.

By the time we see a shortage is late, way too late. Lungs need oxygen and cannot wait for purchase orders and negotiations. You'll need MILLIONS of them, and doctors that know how to use them, like yesterday.

Currently there is more than enough. The problem is lack of information and lack of distribution. Making more without solving those problems is ineffectual.

You can do both simultaneously - make more while solving the issue of communication and distribution. Again, you seem to miss the point - while there are currently enough, it is likely there will not be enough in the near future. If we don't produce more before that point, it is too late.

You're gonna need 20 million of them