Healthcare workers everywhere are on the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak. Unfortunately, each day brings new updates on their dire need for critical equipment like ventilators and personal protective gear (PPE) like face masks. Veolia was uniquely positioned to help provide surgical masks out of a strategic stockpile the company kept in safe storage following a bird flu outbreak some twelve years ago.
Now the day has come to donate this stockpile to hospitals that need them to keep patients and healthcare workers safe. Veolia North America’s Vice President of Corporate Health and Safety Mike Richter is coordinating the delivery of 40,000 surgical masks to hospitals in New York City, Houston, Philadelphia, Albuquerque, Colton and Montreal.
"The need for surgical masks is so great at the present time that we're seeing press reports of seamstresses, dry cleaners and quilters sewing masks using fabric remnants. We’re glad we can do our part to provide this crucial PPE to support patients and medical professionals who need it most," said Richter.
Read more in coverage from:
Waste 360: Veolia North America Donates 40,000 Masks to Hospitals
The Post Star: Veolia sending surgical masks to Glen Falls Hospital
Albuquerque Business Journal: How NM companies are giving back in response to coronavirus