[Port au Prince] – The United States government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has donated a shipment of 37 brand-new, state-of-the-art ventilators to Haiti to assist in its fight against COVID-19. The donation delivers on President Trump’s generous offer of these critically needed supplies and supports Haiti’s urgent response to the pandemic. These ventilators will be dispatched to seven hospitals across Haiti.
The ventilators, produced in the United States, reflect leading-edge and in-demand technology. They are compact, deployable, and provide Haiti with flexibility in treating patients affected by the virus. For patients whose lungs are not working adequately despite receiving oxygen, this vital resource may prove lifesaving.
U.S. Ambassador to Haiti, Michele Sison, declared: “The President of the United States and the American people provide these ventilators to the Haitian people in order to save lives. This American-made equipment is state-of-the-art and will deliver quality care to Haitian patients in need. This donation we provide to Haiti is part of a global program to provide ventilators critical to the treatment of severe cases of COVID-19 to countries around the world.”
These ventilators play a vital role in caring for critically ill COVID-19 patients. Beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, these ventilators will help Haitian doctors deliver life-saving intensive care to patients suffering from other severe, life threatening cardiac, pulmonary, and trauma-related illnesses. They represent a significant contribution in strengthening Haiti’s health system.
In addition to the ventilators, USAID is funding a tailored package of support that includes installation, an initial training for healthcare workers, and a one-year service agreement for regular maintenance. This donation builds on the $16.1 million the U.S. government has committed to Haiti in response to the pandemic, through the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and USAID. This funding is helping to strengthen clinical care, train health workers, build lab capacity, improve disease surveillance, disseminate health messages to reduce risks within Haitian communities, install handwashing stations, and distribute soap in vulnerable neighborhoods, and more.
The 37 ventilators arrived in Haiti by plane on September 3 and are currently stored in the USAID Global Health Supply Chain warehouse to be dispatched to select hospitals in the coming days. On September 4, USAID Mission Director Chris Cushing met with Ministry of Ministry of Health (MSPP) Representative Rudy Mentor at the warehouse to examine the shipment and discuss next steps.
Christopher Cushing said: “To date, USAID has delivered over 5,000 ventilators to over 15 countries to support care for COVID-19 patients. We are very happy to add Haiti to this list and bring this lifesaving equipment to help the Haitian people.”
For decades, the United States has been the world’s largest provider of bilateral assistance in health. Since 2009, American taxpayers have generously funded more than $100 billion in health assistance and nearly $70 billion in humanitarian assistance.
Through an All-of-America approach, the United States is providing lifesaving support by coordinating with the Government of Haiti and other stakeholders to identify priority areas for investment. Because an infectious-disease threat anywhere can become a threat everywhere, the United States calls on other donors to contribute to the global effort to combat COVID-19.
For more information about USAID’s response to COVID-19, please visit: https://www.usaid.gov/coronavirus-covid-19
