President Donald Trump has ordered
General Motors to
make ventilators under the Defense Production Act hours after
criticizing the company for not acting quickly enough to produce the
devices amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Korean War-era statute can force certain American companies
to produce materials that are in short supply in the face of the growing outbreak. The order comes hours after
GM announced plans to build critical-care ventilators with Ventec Life Systems at one of the automaker’s component plants in Indiana. The
order does not change General Motors’ previously announced plans or
schedule to produce the ventilators, according to GM spokesman Jim Cain.
Earlier, the companies said they were expecting to begin shipping as
early as next month. Trump, in
a statement from the White House, said the action “will help ensure the quick production of ventilators that will save American lives.” “Our
negotiations with GM regarding its ability to supply ventilators have
been productive, but our fight against the virus is too urgent to allow
the give-and-take of the contracting process to continue to run its
normal course,” he said. GM, in an emailed statement, did not
directly address Trump invoking the act. It reiterated that employees
with Ventec, GM and their supply base “have been working around the
clock for over a week to meet this urgent need.”...
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