BOSTON (WHDH) - Hundreds of businesses across the Bay State have shown interest in donating personal protective equipment to local healthcare workers who are on the frontline battling the coronavirus outbreak, Gov. Charlie Baker announced Monday.
RELATED: Boston adding hundreds of beds after homeless person tests positive for coronavirus
The state’s coronavirus command center has been contacted by hundreds of businesses looking to donate masks, gowns, gloves, and other essential pieces of equipment, Baker said during a news conference at the State House. Hospital supplies are said to be running dangerously low.
The governor also said the state has received a shipment of personal protective equipment from the strategic national stockpile and that 1,000 ventilators will soon be arriving in Massachusetts.
Over the weekend, the Baker administration launched an online portal where individuals and companies can easily donate or sell personal protective equipment and volunteer to support the COVID-19 outbreak.
Baker told reporters that the “whole issue of PPE has been a difficult one” and that he’s made that clear to the Trump administration. He added that the quick turnaround with the ventilator request is recognition from the federal government that Massachusetts has a desperate need for equipment.
There are about 3,500 virus tests being administered each day and 10,000 were conducted over the weekend, according to Baker. As of Monday, there were 5,752 confirmed cases across the state and 56 deaths.
Baker went on to remind the public that there is also a crucial need for blood donations.
RELATED: Have you lost your job? Here’s how you can apply for unemployment benefits in Mass.
He then thanked the Commonwealth for their “patience, perseverance, and determination” during this pandemic.
Baker also issued a warning, saying a coronavirus surge could take place April 7 through April 17.
He urged everyone to practice social distancing because it will have an impact on slowing the spread of the virus.
Click here for more coronavirus coverage.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)