President Trump is ramping up production of cotton swabs needed for coronavirus testing, he said at his daily news conference.
Governors of several states previously commented on a statement by the president, saying that there are enough tests available and that the states can get to work. According to both Republican and Democratic governors, that is not the case. According to them, there is a worldwide shortage of cotton swabs needed for the tests.
Trump said he was the Defense Production Act commitment to ultimately provide an additional ten million cotton swabs per month. According to Trump, testing is primarily “a local matter” and not a task for the federal government. “All the necessary material for the tests is already there or is on the way. We will soon have so many cotton swabs that you no longer know what to do with them.”
Pennies: enough test capacity
According to Vice President Pence, there is now enough testing capacity for all states to start easing the lockdown. “Any state can begin the first phase of the recovery plan if the other criteria are met.” The other criteria mean that there is enough hospital capacity and that the number of infections decreases fourteen days in a row.
Trump previously used the Defense Production Act already to claim respirators manufactured in America. Incidentally, that respiratory equipment is now sufficient, Trump assured. According to the president, the governor of New York sends surplus equipment to Massachusetts and New Mexico. Trump himself has spoken to the Mexican president about the need to supply respirators to Mexico.
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