There better prepared. Reporter have any u. S. Diplomats or u. S. Officials contracted the virus as they have tried to rescue u. S. Citizens abroad to . Not that im aware of but theres no doubt i remember when we sent our team to get officials and about 800 american citizens that were living in wuhan i remember we sent one of our first repatriations, we were very careful. We were going into a very difficult very fraught place. We were blessed, they all got back with no one having contracted the virus on that trip. Im not aware of any officials who had the virus attacked them. We have a number of state Department Officials who have covid19 now, we have three fatalities of local employees, people working for the state department and embassies
around the world, weve had three fatalities so far. Reporter there were some calls on the World Health Organization for leadership change there im wondering where you are on that . This is not the time to be doing that kind of change. There will be a lot of time to look back and see how the World Health Organization performed. In the meantime what our task is to preserve and protect the american taxpayers and make sure our resources dont go to places that arent going to deliver on the country. Reporter you said china has a responsibility to get correct figures, how would you broadly characterize cooperation with china . Lots of places have been cooperating, there are places on the ground now where we have access to the data we need and we are deeply appreciative of that. They said they want to cooperate, we are completely prepared to cooperate with them. That means sharing data, being transparent, being up front, allowing information to flow freely. Thats our expectation, not just in china, every country that is in this place today. Collectively we have to work our way through this and to do that you have to have really good data. Thank you, mr. President , thank you all. President trump thank you very much. In just a few days weve delivered nearly 11 million n95 masks to hot spots around the country, including 6. 6 million to new york and new jersey, 1. 8 million to chicago, 1. 87 million to detroit and
870,000 to new orleans. I spoke to the governor of louisiana while ago and they are doing really pretty well, much better than they thought. They will be using fewer beds as you know, we built the hospital and are set to complete another hospital, theres even a possibility they wont need it thats what we discussed. Today, we have shipped out more than 8,000 ventilators, an additional 2,200 newly manufactured ventilators come online on monday, we are going to be sending them to various locations in case they need them. My administration is working with philips to double their production of ventilators by may and quadruple production by later this year, high quality ventilators. We are eliminating bureaucratic barriers to pave the way for Major Investments in American Manufacturing sites and sales. This will help to ensure our country can permanently produce enough ventilators in the future that we can do it by ourselves, we will have a big stockpile when we finish and we expect to be sending quite a few to other countries to help them and even now, a couple countries are really, really in dire need. It looks like our projections were right on ventilators. Some states they were thinking they would need thousands more, they are now already taken care of. Which we are very happy about. In addition beginning in may, we will be receiving almost 300 million new face masks. We are going to have masks of 300 million, starting to be delivered in may and the month of june. We are thinking about doing an extra 200 million should we need
them for the stockpile. Well be in a position to have something incredible, a total of 500 million masks, today 750,000 new protective grounds landed in dallas, texas, as a result of a Partnership Led by the federal government, dupont, and fedex. Thats been a Great Partnership and its worked very well. We have 750,000 new protective grounds and these are highlevel, very high quality. As american industry steps up to help, so our doctors and scientists. Ten drugs are now in Clinical Trials and my administration is taking unprecedented actions to make new therapies and treatments available without delay. The doctors, the lab technicians, the companies i spoke with them yesterday, they are coming up with things i think i hope in the very near future are going to be very,
special. Very important. Our National Stockpile is now equipped with nearly 30 million hydroxychloroquine pills. Up to about 30 million, we are distributing them by the millions. You read about state representative Karen Whitsett i appreciate her going public. I think she was very much helped by this bill. She saw what i was saying on television, she thought she was in bad shape, i dont want to go further than that but you see her story, you know her story, shes a highly respected state rep from michigan and i think she did a great service, what she has done. Shes in terrific shape, she looks fantastic and she was very generous with her statements. In addition, the azithromycin
and zinc it all has to be recommended by doctors, physicians, they say zinc, i want to throw that out there because thats where they seem to have the best result. You add the zinc and the azithromycin weve had a lot of good stories. We have almost 30 million doses. I want to thank Prime Minister modi of india for allowing us to have what we requested when the problem arose, he was terrific. If later today, the cdc will release further guidance to help ensure Critical Infrastructure workers can perform their job safely after potential exposure to the virus. The question was asked a little while ago about the World Health Organization and as you know
they made a statement january 14th that there was no human to human transmission there was. They probably made that statement in the second to third week of december but they made it powerfully on january 14th and they criticized me very strongly when i said that we are going to shut down flights coming in from china, we were criticized very badly. Last year and for many years, hundreds of millions of dollars has been paid to the World Health Organization, hundreds of millions of dollars a year. And the last year was 452 million, china paid 42 million. Before that it was 500 million and china paid less than 40 million. Before that, it was similar
numbers in the four hundreds, three hundreds, and sometimes even in the five hundreds of millions of dollars. In china would do proportionally a small fraction of that number. I think they have to get their priorities right and their priorities are that everybody has to be treated properly, every country. It doesnt seem that way, does it . We are going to study and make a determination as to what were doing. In the meantime we are holding back, we want to say very unfa unfair. The United States 452 million compared to 42 million, thats to the World Health Organization, thats not good. Its not fair. It is at all. Other countries as you know also gave substantially less than the United States. And the w. H. O. Got it wrong, they got up very wrong. In many ways they were wrong. They also minimize the threat very strongly and not good. I want to take this opportunity to express the thanks of an extremely grateful nation to americans who go to work every day especially these Critical Industries in the midst of the pandemic to care for and protect and feed American People including medical personnel, law enforcement, first responders, food suppliers, sanitation workers, and somebody mentioned today would you please specifically call out cashiers and clerks at Grocery Stores who are in danger during the pandemic . During the epidemic, they are in danger, they are in great dang danger. Theyve been incredible, i want to call them out. Cashiers and clerks, we grew up with cashiers and clerks in Grocery Stores, theyve been great and they have been true american heroes. Soon they will be ideal again as we mourn the terrible loss of life from this grave pandemic, weve seen signs of our aggressive strategy slowing the spread is working. The number of cases is stabilizing, the number of beds in some locations, i was watching louisiana, you can see whats going on. The numbers are changing, they are changing rapidly and soon we will be over that curve, we will be over the top and headed in the right direction, i feel strongly about that. Some terrible days ahead but we are going to have some wonderful days ahead. We are going get this behind us,
some people will never be able to forget if they had a loved one or a great friend we are going to get it behind us, this is a tribute to the discipline and the devotion of the American People what we have accomplished. If every american continues to strictly adhere to social distancing guidelines, we can defeat the invisible enemy and save countless lives, we can do it much more quickly. We are hopefully heading toward the final stretch, as we continue to wage allout medical war to defeat the virus, we are also fighting an economic war to ensure we can quickly turn to full financial strength. We have to get our country back, we have to get going, everybody wants to get going. Yesterday i asked congress to provide an additional 250 billion to expand the incredibly successful paycheck
protection program, its incredible which is allowing our Small Businesses to keep employees on the payroll and get ready for the opening, a second opening to protect millions of american jobs. Im asking congress to pass additional funding for this program, this week as soon as possible. I think we have a pretty good understanding with the democrats, hopefully its going to be bipartisan. We do not have time for the partisan games, we dont want that. Totally unrelated agendas, do this for Small Businesses and the workers. We can do it in a phase four, because its so successful. The 350 billion will be expanded, if you look at the kind of loans, tens of thousands of loans to Small Businesses, its a great thing to see. Turned out to be more successful
and more productive than anybody would have thought. Democrats and republicans are coming together to get that job done. Its a very important job. Recent days and days ahead to restore Americas Health and economic might but also dimensions of our National Strength will be brought together i think stronger i think we have a chance to be stronger than ever before. Weve learned a lot and we have tremendous stimulus now, tremendous stimulus and we are going for more. Hopefully we will do an infrastructure bill so we can rebuild our roads and highways and tunnels and all of the things that we should be doing for our country. We are going to rebuild our country, not other countries where they dont even appreciate it. As our citizens persevere through this present challenge, we are replenishing American Well and witnessing american valor each and every day, you see it every day the daring and
determination of American People, this crisis reminds us no matter how hard it gets, no matter what obstacles we must overcome, americans will keep on fighting the victory and we will secure the glorious future that our citizens so richly deserve, after going through this nightmare. This evil beast. We are getting very close and hopefully its on the other side and it will end soon and i think it will. I think the people of this country are fantastic, well take a few questions and then the Vice President will take over. Reporter the Intelligence Committee was warning about the virus as early as november, whee intelligence and could you have acted on it then . President trump i learned when i started, i learned the
gravity of it sometime prior to closing the country to china. It as you know we closed up to europe, i would like to see the information. Reporter a lot of americans want to see businesses reopened. President trump so do i, more than anybody. What specifically has to happen for you to feel it safe to reopen the country . President trump we have to be on the downside of that slope and heading to a very strong direction that this thing is gone. We can do it in phases, some areas are much less affected than others but it would be nice to be able to open with a big bang and open up our country, certainly most of our country and i think were going to do that soon. I would say we are ahead of schedule. You hate to say it too loudly because all of a sudden things dont happen, but i think we will be sooner rather than
later. Well be sitting down with professionals, sitting down with many different people making a determination in those meetings will start taking place fairly soon. Reporter you wouldnt do that until her Health Experts say its safe . President trump i would rely on them heavily, yeah. We are putting in very heavy Testing Systems, we have the best Testing Systems and dont forget. When we look at cases im not going to insult anybody or insult any country but im looking at countries that are showing less cases than us, its testing. We are testing more than anybody. You saw exponentially more than anybody by far and our testing has become i think it will end up being a big strength. Other countries of the media talked about are now calling us for what are we doing and how are we doing it so quickly . Theyve proven to be very accurate. Reporter one on infrastructure, members of your administration have pointed ou out the head of the Tennessee Valley authority made 8 million last year. President trump its ridiculous long before i got here, you said Tennessee Valley authority, right . Has to be the highest paid man in any government, makes approximately eight or 9 million. I dont know the gentle and but hes got a heck of a job, he gets paid a lot of money. Hes been there for a long while, hasnt he . Reporter he came in april. President trump that separate, we have new people going on the board, i know. Thats a quasipublic agency and whoever the head of the agency is, that person makes a lot of money. Which is an amazing thing. And then when we want them to do something, theyre not there for us. Thats been a story for a long time. Reporter is reducing their salary part of the infrastructure bill . President trump reducing it by a lot. Tennessee valley authority, thats right. Ive been waiting for somebody to ask me about that, its been bothering me for a long time. Reporter one of the biggest stories is a show on netflix called tiger king. The the star is serving a prison sentence, hes asking for you to pardon him. I was wondering if you had any
thoughts on pardoning him . President trump which son . It must be don. Is that what he said . 22 years for what . P allegedly hired someone to murder and Animal Rights activist but he said he didnt do that. President trump you think he didnt do it . Are you on his side . Are you recommending a pardon . As a reporter, youre not allowed to do that, would you recommend a pardon . I dont think you would. Ill take a look. Joe exotic . Thats joe exotic . Reporter last week your top experts are saying we should expect hundred thousand to 240,000 deaths, are these numbers now being revised downward . I know you dont want people to stop social distancing but what can you tell us about the numbers . President trump my impression is those were the
numbers that were set and those were set as an expectation for quite a while ago, i think we are doing much better than those numbers. If either of you would like to talk about that, thats a fair question, you want to come up . President trump i think all of you, many of you have done the analysis of the same models that we utilized and if you do the models of the model, you end up with that range. At the same time, we carefully looked at italy and spain and we are doing much better in many cases than several other countries we are trying to understand that. If we believe the Health Care System of the United States is quite extraordinary, many of you are watching the models and they have consistently decreased the mortality from over it was
90,000, down to 81,000 now down to 61,000 and that is modeled on what america is doing. Thats whats happening. I think what has been so remarkable to those of us who have been in the Science Field for so long, is how important behavioral change is and how amazing americans are adapting to and following through on those behavioral changes. That is what is changing the cases and that is what will change the mortality going forward. Now were into the time period of full mitigation that should be reflected in the coming weeks of decreasing mortality. Thats what we are supposed to see. We are impressed by the American People and i think models are models. Ive always worked on validating, i spent my life validating models all over the world and thats why we do surveys and surveillance and trying to make sure what we think is right is right. I think this will change how people look at respiratory diseases because it will change what is possible when the globe and particularly the American People do this level of mitigation. I think as i talked about yesterday, we are still in awe of the American Peoples strength in this in following through. President trump im going to ask bob to come up for a second i think tha