Pritzker says state continues PPE acquisition to offset lack of federal supplies

Gov. JB Pritzker said his administration’s efforts to acquire personal protective equipment has been able to offset a lack of support from the federal government.

To date, the state has been able to procure millions of supplies for healthcare facilities and workers, including 9.9 million N95 masks, 14 million KN95 masks, 7.1 million surgical masks, 22.3 million disposable general use masks, 19.6 million gloves, 5.1 million face shields and 3.2 million gowns.

The state acquisitions come as its total delivery of federal supplies equated to 367,700 N95 masks, 1.1 million surgical masks, nearly 693,000 gloves, 174,000 face shields, 142,000 surgical gowns and 4,000 coveralls. Pritzker said that was a fraction of their total request.

“If we had relied on the White House and its obligation to fulfill our needs from the (Strategic National Stockpile), our state and nearly every state in the United States would come up short and could not protect our healthcare workers and our first responders,” he said.

Pritzker said, as of now, the state is going through 1.5 million N95 masks every 10 days, as well as 25 million gloves, 4.4 million gowns and 700,000 surgical masks.

That does not take into account the supplies that will be necessary for healthcare workers at the McCormick Place field hospital.

“When you compare our federal shipments to our burn rate, the product we receive from the federal stockpile will only last a handful of days in this multi-month battle,” Pritzker said. “It’s our own state procurement initiative that is making the difference.”

He added that, as of Monday, the state is OK regarding ventilators. He said they are closely monitoring the number of hospitalizations and the number of patients who need ICU care to determine when more will be needed.

Pritzker said he has talked with companies such as General Motors and Ford Motor Company about acquiring more ventilators, as well as providers in other medical fields such as dentists who may have supplies that are not currently being used.

There were 33 more deaths reported on Monday, bringing the state’s total to 307.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said that about 70 percent of those who have died have had some underlying conditions, such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease. She said they were still gathering data, but it was likely to show that the “overwhelming majority” of those dying from the virus have comorbid conditions.

There were 1,006 new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 12,262 in 73 counties. There have been 62,942 individuals tested in Illinois.

Officials also urged residents Monday to remain indoors as much as possible in the coming days. Temperatures are expected to reach the 70s across the state Tuesday.

“If people congregate tomorrow, we will set the state back in our fight against COVID-19,” said Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. She also asked residents to remain indoors this and not congregate during Passover or Easter.

Pritzker said they have been notified the federal government will provide some medical staff for the McCormick Place field hospital. An exact number of workers who will be made available was unknown, he said.

Officials have previously said about 140 healthcare workers will oversee the facility’s first 50 hospital beds. An additional 2,500 beds are set to be added this month.