Pence visits Wisconsin, thanks GE for ventilators

Vice President Mike Pence highlighted the manufacturing of ventilators during a visit to battleground Wisconsin on Tuesday, a trip that Democrats used to blame the Trump administration for failing to deliver needed supplies to the state to fight the coronavirus.

Pence toured a GE Healthcare plant in Madison which has doubled its production of ventilators over the past month. GE said it plans to double production again by the end of June.

Pence used the opportunity to underscore the availability of ventilators across the country, despite complaints to the contrary. He also thanked GE workers for stepping up, working long hours and saving lives.

"You understood the need. You leaned in it. And there's just simply no question that union machinists saved lives. And we are truly grateful to you," Pence said.

"Every American should be proud of the fact that no American who has needed a ventilator has been denied a ventilator during the coronavirus epidemic," he added.

According to the Wisconsin Hospital Association, there were 318 COVID-19 patients on ventilators as of Monday and there were 1,251 ventilators available in the state.

Pence said as a result in the increased production of the machines, the federal government has already distributed some 11,000 ventilators nationwide and he says there are still more than 9000 in the stock pile.

Democrats have criticized the Trump administration's response to the virus and claim many states still don't have the equipment they need to treat the influx of patients.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.