RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Governor Ralph Northam and state officials visited the Virginia Emergency Team Warehouse on Richmond’s northside this morning and provided an update on personal protective equipment (PPE) distribution across the commonwealth.
Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) is in charge of operating the warehouse in Richmond and has established over a dozen contracts to support Virginia’s PPE needs.
Virginia now has three warehouses full of PPE that did not exist 8 weeks ago, state officals said. From various donations and contracts, Virginia was been able to obtain 1.7 million pieces of PPE and 105 pieces of equipment.
“We need PPE in order to keep people safe in Virginia,” Gov. Northam said.
After the first coronavirus case in Virginia on March 7, Gov. Northam said they began to learn about PPE and how ‘vitally important’ it is. Northam mentioned there was not a lot of guidance on obtaining PPE, so governors have been competing for personal protective equipment since the outbreak of this pandemic.
“We didn’t have enough PPE in Virginia to supply everyone who needed to be protected,” Nortjam said.
In order to combat Virginia’s PPE shortage, Gov. Northam said he made the difficult and aggressive decision to ask hospitals to stop performing non-elective surgeries. This allowed the state to stock up on much-needed PPE for those on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic.
In two months since the first case, Virginia has been able to secure enough PPE to support the state’s reopening process.
Gov. Northam assures that Virginia has enough PPE to keep people safe as we move into phase one on May 15.
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