#COVID19USA: Health Officials Say ‘Ventilators’ Donated By Tesla Are Wrong Type And Not Powerful Enough

In the quest to get badly needed medical equipment into hospitals in the United States and around the world, carmakers have pivoted workers to start making everything from masks to face shields to ventilators, which are in critically short supply. Among those companies is Tesla, but hospitals are now saying the 1,000 units the company shipped aren’t actually full-fledged ventilators, which are commonly referred to as “vents” in medical parlance.

According to The Week, after CEO Elon Musk tweeted March 31st that he had “extra FDA-approved ventilators” ready to ship out, Tesla didn’t ship out actual ventilators, it sent machines more closely related to C-PAP devices called BiPAP or B-PAP machines, made by ResMed. C-PAP and Bi-PAP devices are indeed used in hospitals for medical breathing issues, as well as in homes for ailments such as sleep apnea. They use a mask that covers the users entire face or just the nose and mouth, but they are not effective for the critical symptoms of COVID-19, which requires ventilators that include intubation, or the insertion of tubes into the lungs of the patient.

Elon Musk
✔@elonmusk
We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please me or @Tesla know.

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