Due to the deteriorating epidemiological development in the Czech Republic, the European Commission will supply the country with 30 artificial ventilators from the European Union’s emergency depots. Prime Minister Andrej Babiš announced this after a call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“Thank you for your solidarity and very quick response. We appreciate the help,” the prime minister wrote on Twitter, where he posted about the aid from the European Union.
According to the latest data, there are 1,932 artificial ventilators in Czech hospitals. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the free capacity of these ventilators is being reviewed on a daily basis. While in mid-October, more than 50 percent of them were occupied, currently, it is 52.1 percent.
Von der Leyen also commented on sending the ventilators to the Czech Republic on Twitter.
“Czechia is facing one of the most difficult situations in Europe right now. The number of coronavirus cases is rising rapidly. And it needs medical equipment to treat patients in hospitals. We do not leave our European friends alone in these hard times,” she said in the video.
Czechia is going through hard times. The number of coronavirus cases is rising. Hospitals need medical equipment. The EU is here to help.
I called @AndrejBabis to tell him we are dispatching rapidly a 1st set of 30 ventilators from our RescEU reserve. More support will come. pic.twitter.com/gsZu7Ij8gJ
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) October 22, 2020
She announced that the European Commission is mobilizing medical material through the Civic Protection Mechanism.
“I just called Prime Minister Andrej Babiš to tell him that we are dispatching rapidly to Czechia a set of 30 ventilators from our RescEU reserve,” von der Leyen added.
In the video, she also mentioned that the Commission is in touch with the other member states to mobilize more ventilators for the Czech Republic.
According to the Czech Minister of Defense Lubomír Metnar, on Friday, NATO will also approve the delivery of 60 ventilators to the Czech Republic.
Title image: Health care workers prepare to transport a COVID-19 patient from an intensive care unit (ICU) at hospital in Kyjov to hospital in Brno, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2020. Coronavirus infections in the Czech Republic are on a steep rise, setting a new record high for the second straight day. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
