On March 27, with the country facing a potential shortage of ventilators, Trump Tweeted a demand to General Motors and Ford to “START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!”
A Trump fan name Yaron Oren-Pines sensed an opportunity and responded to Trump's Tweet. Oren-Pines, although an engineer, had no technical experience in medical devices, but he ended up recommended as ventilator vendor by Trump's White House coronavirus task force. In desperation New York state, apparently convinced by the White House recommendation, placed a $69 million purchase order to Oren-Pines. Facing the potential Covid-19 disaster, the state paid up front, even though they were paying $47 thousand per ventilator (three times the market rate).
No surprise here - NO VENTILATORS WERE EVER DELIVERED.
A state official, speaking on background because he was not authorized to publicly discuss the terms of the deal, said New York entered into the contract with Oren-Pines at the direct recommendation of the White House coronavirus task force.
Nearly a month later, New York has terminated the contract, and the state is now trying to recover all of the money it paid the Silicon Valley electrical engineer. Officials refused to say how much the state had been able to claw back. “We are in discussions on a few remaining issues,” said Heather Groll, a spokesperson for the New York Office of General Services, part of the interagency effort to help New York get supplies.
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