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Feds seize 30,000 protective gowns ordered by suburban fire department
By adamg on Sat, 04/11/2020 - 9:28pm
The Milford Daily News reports the Milford Fire Department was about to receive a shipment of 30,000 protective gowns for firefighters and Milford Regional Medical Center, but that the federal government took them from the distributor just before they were shipped.
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Comments
Of course they did.
Of course they did.
Who, precisely, are the "feds"?
I keep reading and hearing this reference to "the Feds" seizing shipments all over the country.
But I have yet to see any reporting on precisely who are "the Feds". We need names, ranks, badge numbers, names of the agencies, names of the people that they report to. Are they armed? What are they threatening to do if you don't give up the goods, and by what authority? How about some videos of the actual incidents.
But I have seen none of this. What exactly is going on? "Feds" doesn't tell me anything.
FEMA
n/t
Stories about a report that
Stories about a report that interviewed the Chief who says he talked to a supplier and that supplier made some claim in reference to the "fed". Maybe the supplier sold them for more money and just made that up!
It's pure conjecture click bait at this point! Might was well ask Chief Sparky McSparkyStache about the 50 lb bass he heard his son's brother-in-law's cousin's neighbor caught last week.
FEMA denies seizing anything BTW.
FBI
Does not investigate overseas deals.
So which... Nevermind.
Apparently, in one case at least, the FBI
You have to read the article, because the headline focuses on the fact that the PPE in question never existed - but apparently the reason why the FBI found that out was because they were going to confiscate them.
"Investigators stumbled onto the scheme while looking into whether they could intercept the masks for the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the Defense Production Act, the U.S. attorney’s office said Friday."
ps: i don't know whether I
ps: i don't know whether I believe that they never existed.
"I see nothing; I know nothing; what ppe? Never existed!
Of course they did.
Hold it a second...Milford Regional is a Harvard/Deaconess (I believe) associated hospital. They set up several of their urgent care clinics as C19/flu like symptoms only clinics, to try to keep the main hospital reasonably clear.
So, tell me, why is Wilford Brimley, MFD chief, buying 30,000 PPE kits? Is he in charge of PPE distribution now? Maybe the feds beat him to it for quite valid reasons.
Possibly someone in charge of scrounging PPE kits for Deaconess/etc. noticed and said, 'Hey, wait a minute...'
People just like to hate
lol, Milford doesn't even have 30,000 residents!
why do they need 30,000?
Not that I think the feds seizing stuff left and right is ok, but maybe this large an order isn't fair when everyone else needs them too?
Does everything need an excuse?!
Ya'll have to stop justifying what you know is wrong. So you need a gown? I havent seen any state except 1 get what they asked for, so why assume the gowns will actually go to any state/person in need. It's been said they maybe reselling the seized purchases.
People haven't been getting
People haven't been getting everything they ask for because there aren't enough so FEMA is controlling supply and distributing PPE to where it's most in need.
Fixed for you
OMG, facts not your forte!
FEMA Region 1 Office acquired the PPE for distribution to the six New England states and not one of the six New England states has a governor that kisses Trumps ass so again, this story does not support the "muh, me hate it" theory.
Let's talk facts okay? Leave the partisan rhetoric in the gutter where it belongs.
Florida received all the PPE they needed then some...
49% of Floridians voted for Trump in 2016. PPE and other equipment order filled right away.
59% of New Yorkers voted for Clinton in 2016. They didn't even receive there private order it was confiscated by FEMA.
Our President has said the States need to take care of themselves yet an agency he oversees has taken away PPE and equipment from Blue States and distributing them to States that voted for him.
So my question is who's really politicizing the crisis?
That seems to be the popular
That seems to be the popular opinion of the hive here but can you show me a quote from the feds that reads "States need to take care of themselves" and not just a mere, do what you can for yourself first before asking for support, which is precisely how every emergency response works.
Also, everything I read shows a national shortage of PPE. Florida doesn't have everything it needs as you claim.
You need to calm down.
Where has FEMA been distributing it then?
I've seen plenty of news about MEMA distributing PPE that they got through the Patriots' airlift. What has come from FEMA?
Maybe FEMA needs to put
Maybe FEMA needs to put sports trophy logos on its planes to get some news coverage?
https://twitter.com/femaregion1?lang=en
Stories about the federal government helping people are just so boring though and completely contrary to the hive mentality here.
Still wondering...
I followed your link. It led me to the FEMA Region 1 twitter page, where I saw the following:
That last one was the only one that made any reference to MA, and only one of those tweets mentioned a PPE/equipment shipment. So, once more, what is FEMA doing with all that stuff they're confiscating?
There are none so blind as those who will not see
from FEMA twitter, "will be first distributed to areas with the greatest #COVID19 needs."
Nor yours
Reposting a comment I made on another thread:
Talking Points Memo got a FEMA memo that describes how the seized equipment is disposed of.
TPM says the 'portion' that the distributors focus on hurting areas is 50%, and that they get to sell the other 50% on the regular market. It's not clear whether that market includes states fighting bidding wars for the equipment, as some allege.
Twitter is not a reliable source of facts.
Well I see your point but
Well I see your point but lets do a little math. The medical center has 200 doctors on staff, plus another 100 folks at the facility in other capacity (according to Wikipedia). Lets say they staff as normal (10 nurses to 3 doctors, according to AMA) that's another 600+ nurses. Now lets look at the fire department, it has a bit less than 50 staff. Now I don't think all of the above folks are on at the same time, so lets say the total of 1/3 of the above are working at any given time, or somewhere around 270 people. This would provide supplies for about 3.5 months if they only get one gown per 24hr day. If it is 12 hour shifts (as is more typical) and gowns are not shared among staff this is only enough for just under 2 months. I don't think that is unreasonable at all tbh...***I am not in the medical or public safety field, and these are super rough numbers. I expect this would be enough for between 1 month and 5+ months depending on how many people would be getting them and how often they are changed out during a shift...not unreasonable...
FYI, it's a global pandemic
FYI, it's a global pandemic so Milford is not the only community with such needs! FEMA is rationing supplies based on need.
What job is FEMA doing? They
What job is FEMA doing? They aren't a shipping clerk, after all.
If they wanted to federalize the entire supply chain, they should have done it from the start. Been the only US bidder on procurement opportunities and distributed it to the states at cost, if not subsidized.
But the states were told to acquire their own PPE. You can't tell them they need to get their own stuff, then pirate it when they do just that.
Milford is a town, not a
Milford is a town, not a state.
States were told to also use what resources they had to acquire what they need--sad the feds even have to tell states that!
But Feds have always been the lead on national disasters, which FEMA is the lead Agency.
Civics 101
Thanks for the geography
Thanks for the geography lesson!
So local governments and organizations are not supposed to be purchasing anything right now?
You need a reading lesson too
>FEMA is rationing supplies based on need.
>States were told to also use what resources they had to acquire what they need
See it's both. Feds and states working together. I know people that hate on half the country find that hard to understand but that's the plan.
But Feds have always been the lead on national disasters, which
Someone should tell the President this.
The President directly told Baker that that the States were on their own and would have to compete to get their resources themselves - while also laughing and confirming that we would also have to compete with the Fed - which isn't particularly fair competition for a state.
You knew this already, though, didn't you? Spin spin spin.
>President directly told
>President directly told Baker that that the States were on their own
BS. Show us where the Feds told states they were "on their own"! That's you spinning the headlines based on partisan politics.
Feds told states that if they have resources to get supplies then by all means they should help themselves, which is perfectly normal. That doesn't mean that FEMA won't do its job as normal and supply those in need with what it can aquire.
https://youtu.be/9jEMgLsVBvw?t=43
good job
you’ve won the endless war of internet pedantry.
you’re correct that no one will find a clip of any federal spokesman saying that states are “on their own”.
what does this quotation imply to you?
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/19/trump-governors-coronavirus-med...
i hope you won’t forget that your position in this comment section has been that states should allow the feds to do their job.
I posted the video of the
I posted the video of the quote and you choose to respond with fragments of it chopped up with someone else's words filling in the gaps? That's you spinning the message kehd.
Then you double down by strawman characterizing my statements.
Don't know what to tell you other than believe the source, not this dogma of interpreting someone's recharacterization to prove your hive mindset!
rEcHaRAcTeRriZAtIOn
it’s a direct quote edited to work as a sentence in the first person.
he didn’t say that, and if he did, he didn’t mean it, and if he did, others have said worse, and if they haven’t...
quote edited
>it’s a direct quote edited
You said, and I'm saying read the whole quote.
Editing changes the meaning.
But we agree that at no point did the Feds tell states they are "on their own". In fact, this whole article is about the feds supposedly stepping in to divert supplies to where they are better needed. Yet, people here insist on making a conspiracy? I don't get it.
no it doesn’t
read a book
Wow
I love it when you link to the very thing that disproves what you are saying.
- Trump
- Trump
- Kushner
- Kushner
There are tons of recordings, transcripts, and quotes from the President and his team saying and directing states to get their own PPE supplies. It is laughable easy to find source material completely disproving what you are peddling. Are you a true believer, or just paid to be one online?
"then he said" let's just make stuff up
I love how all your quotes have editorials in the middle to spin the interpretation! Without those made up parts you can't justify your conspiracy theory that the feds are doing too much and not enough at the same time!
And still not one that says "States were on their own" as you claimed. So you reset the goal posts to what--I have no idea.
Seems like you're so mad you can't think straight.
lol
elaborate troll pretends to not know how in line quotations work. 10/10 would recommend
You claimed Trump said states
You claim Trump told the states "We will be backing you".
So what's the problem?
Seems like you've been so mad for so long you forget why!
Hospital
The linked article said the FD was keeping some, but donating the majority to the local hospital.
Yes.
Yes.
...and even if the hospital used only 100/day - that's not even a 30-day supply.
Maths off there bud
This would be a 300 days supply at 100/day.
Math
add another zero
oops, yes. You're right.
oops, yes. You're right.
I'll have to go back over the staffing numbers one of the others suggested. Number of different doctors, nurses, scanner techs, cleaners, etc... that enters an inpatient floor or ER in a shift X assume 1 gown per person per shift (which is low - even with emergency rationing/reuse, there will be times that enough fluids encountered in one patient that they daren't go to the next without changing). How long does that last?
Fire Department... I'd guess that's the EMT side of Fire Dept. In the current crisis, how many crews of two have how many calls each day where they need to suit up as a precaution?
Or maybe let FEMA do its job?
Or maybe let FEMA do its job?
I respect the professionals
I respect the professionals at FEMA.
Unfortunately,
- the article doesn't make any mention of FEMA
- the actions of the Trump Administration so far in this crisis (directives, policies and wind-changes of the Administration, not agency professionals) cast a great deal of doubt on "federal action" and demand questioning, skepticism, and accountability up front, NOT after the fact.
Thanks for confirming the
Thanks for confirming the outrage here is just partisan politics and not based on any factual reporting.
And what do you say...
...to reports of healthcare providers that they don't have the PPE they need? Whose fault is that?
Here's what I say
This blame game is not helpful. Look for solutions.
FEMA should be inventorying PPE, using FBI to look at inventory is smart, and when needed FMEA should be moving that PPE to where it is needed most.
When they do it...
...I'll be happy to "let them".
"Investigators stumbled onto the scheme while looking into whether they could intercept the masks for the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the Defense Production Act, the U.S. attorney’s office said Friday."
And why wouldn't we let FEMA
And why wouldn't we let FEMA move PPE to where it's needed most?
The irony
of the feds overruling a private purchase (capitalism) and instead taking the shipment to redistribute as it deems necessary (socialism).
Actually it's mark up the price,
sell them to the highest bidder, and have Kushner et al keep the profits.
By et all maybe you mean 'et al.'?
You sound reasonable.
lol
wouldn't you usually be one of the first ones to call out ad hominem?
Thanks for catching the typo.
Agh, spell checkers.
This
If you think these aren't being seized to either be given to connected folks or be sold to for a higher price by someone connected to the Trump crime family, you're dumb.
They know something if they are doing this. Sorry, too many orders, regardless of if its private or public, large or small, the fed are seizing them and taking them. You bet they will be resold.
It's all intentional.. the firing of the pandemic team, orange face and others owning stock in at pharma company, trump killing the china trade deal so supplies would be limited already, delaying the response, and pretty much doing nothing except wanting people to get back to work and spewing non sense.
A grifer is gonna grift. We're just apart of history's largest grift to make money off of everyone once we're all dying. I think this may go on for months, and as supplies get short, we'll now pay top dollar for this crap while Jared, and Co rake it all in.
Add the stimulus that it looks like they are going to be able to spend on whatever they want.. and you know Trump and his family will make BILLIONS.
We're all just being taken to the cleaners and many will die and its all intentional because someone is a greedy pig.
Happy Easter everyone!!!!
In honor of that
I had pork for Easter dinner.
The 3 million masks Gov.
The 3 million masks Gov. Baker purchased for Mass. that were confiscated by The Feds went to private companies that then sold them for profit to the states that were the highest bidder.
Change the shipping labels?
If they're labeled as "Ivanka Trump Summer Separates" and they'll get delivered with no problem.
That is essentially what we
That is essentially what we did with the Patriots right? That plane was there for "humanitarian" reasons...
" That plane was there for "humanitarian" reasons..."
Kindasorta, but no.
So, here's my version of events. Totally made up, not a grain of truth.
Gov. Baker's people find a supply of N95 masks in China. With the help of people in New York (possibly Gov Cuomo's office, Mayor di Blasio was too busy inspecting Samaritan's Purse for civil rights violations) they make arrangements with the Chinese Consulate in NY to get an airplane to China to get the masks.
Bob Kraft volunteers the Pats jet, which ain't too busy at the moment, to make the trip.
So far so good. All the crew have to get visas (this is where the Chinese Consulate really stepped up, time is of the essence), the plane has to stop somewhere in the US for an avionics upgrade and they head west.
They have a three hour window on the ground to get the stuff loaded. They load what the plane will hold, and there's another plane involved, because there are more masks than the Pats jet will hold.
300,000 masks go to NY because it looked like they'd need them in a hurry.
Win, win.
Samaritan's Purse
Tsk tsk, way too subtle. Here, let's make sure that your dogwhistle doesn't go flying over everyone's head.
"According to the website for Samaritan’s Purse, the organization is specifically seeking Christian medical staff to operate the Central Park extension.
"Medical workers recruited by Samaritan’s Purse are expected to read and abide by the organization’s “Statement of Faith” that regurgitates evangelical Christian doctrine, particularly with regard to human sexuality and the fixed, binary nature of gender."
Let your bigot flag fly.
Added to Jared's stockpile.
Added to Jared's stockpile.
Trump fans rejoice him using
Trump fans rejoice him using this power whereas they would freak out if Obama did this.
But you or the Milford News really squeezed the the timeframe here by describing that the Fire Dept was 'about to receive them' yet say they were taken from the Distributor 'before they were shipped'. And maybe they'll still get their order anyway and it should read 'the order of gowns by the MFD was reprioritized to go to the feds and MFD's order will come along a few days later etc.. (or not)
It's time WE cut off THEIR supply lines too.
No more blue state tax money to red states.
No more Federal tax paid until all seized PPE have been returned or replaced.
State Police should also be commanded to protect all PPE supplies from Jared Kushner.
Everyone needs to realize we're being punished and that this is an act of aggression.
The country may not even make it to November, folks.
Yay!
Other people in this forum think what I think one time!
Just saw this on Ch. 5
So far FEMA has stated it does NOT intercept shipments, the distributor hasn’t confirmed ANYTHING, so its just the fire chief making an assumption of what MAY have transpired.
Top notch journalism here!
Weak
If they're not doing it, it's being done for them.
Haters be hating
We hate the feds for not coordinating the response and now apparently we hate the feds for coordinating the distribution of supplies now too?
This story has been spreading faster than COVID-19 and there's no evidence that FEMA even "seized" the order but they did seemingly buy up all the supplier's inventory. No surprise, since FEMA is the lead coordinator for supplies!
Sorry but cow town sparkies are not the authority on distributing PPE.
What are they coordinating?
What are they coordinating? They're seizing supplies and only seem to be "distributing" a small fraction of them, and they're doing it by giving the supplies back to private companies to sell for profit... the same private companies that the orders were originally placed with.
I don't understand this bottomless well of wishful thinking and benefit of the doubt about the feds here. If Jared Kushner came to your house and said, "we're doing this to be vindictive, deflect responsibility, and make money all at the same time!" while slapping you in the face, would you believe him then?
The feds
literally told states to go out and get their own supplies. Then proceeded to outbid them, or pull this.
And FEMA has proven time and again it couldn’t coordinate a bake sale.
Milford is a town, not a state
Milford isn't a state though, it's a town. Who told Milford's Chief Sparky Mustache Man to go get 30,000 gowns for a town that doesn't even have that many residents?!?!
What literally happened, was the Feds told the states to buy any and all resources IF they have the opportunity.
However, the response is, as always, lead by FEMA, which the Regional Office will distribute the 30,000 gowns to the six New England states where it is most needed. In contrast, Milford doesn't even have 30,000 residents!
simple binaries
for simple minds. the issue isn’t only whether they coordinate or not - it’s the level of confusion and overall not having any clue that the feds have projected for the last few months. but you knew that.
speaking of waffling, it’s amazing to see so many ostensible conservatives lauding the power of the federal government.
Baker just called up another 3000 National Guardsmen.
No connection with this, of course.
The word "seize" does not
The word "seize" does not appear in the article. How likely is it that the distributor just sold the shipment to the Feds for more money than Milford was paying?
Quote from Chiefy McFireChief
Quote from Chiefy McFireChief reads, "unfortunately the federal government got to our distributor prior to our order being shipped." Which could simply mean the feds placed the order before the cow town sparky.
Mildewshits Daily Snooze squirts out the headline, "PPEs taken by feds." Leading one to believe it was potentially highway robbery!
And here it's recharacterized as, "Feds seize 30,000 protective gowns ordered by suburban fire department" click baiting us to think the gov re-appropriated personally owned materials for the greater good--as if that would be a bad?
Respectfully, this is media hysteria making a story out of dog shit.
But...
...they have done it, or at least attempted it, Blanche.
937.5 gowns per Milford firefighter?
So a department of 32 firefighters and less than 4300 calls per year needs 30,000 gowns right now? Seven years worth, based on the numbers? Keep in mind that most departments are sending the bare minimum (usually two medics) to medical calls at this time. Police and firefighters who would normally first-respond are told to wait outside unless needed so no gowns are required for them on most calls. Even if their own website is badly outdated in terms of staffing and calls for service, this is still a gross example of the type of hoarding that the Justice Department has pledged to investigate. I'm glad "the feds" stepped in and stopped a blatant attempt at gown gluttony. Without the proper context, some may be misled into believing that the federal government was wrong to intervene here. No, the federal government acted properly.
And put them where?
Where are the gowns, Fishy?
Oh wait, I know..."in the stockpile" that doesn't seem to be disbursing to anyone but red states.
Is this what you're gonna tell yourself as you choke on your own lungs?
Oh, now here's an interesting story
ABC News reports on how the FBI busted up a scam involving 39 million face masks that didn't exist that a union in California was trying to buy for its members who work in hospitals. Key paragraph, for our discussion here:
So the FBI is looking for PPE shipments and then working with FEMA to seize them. And now we have the answer to who the "feds" are that keep seizing things.
How is that a bad thing?
When Charlie complained about not getting stuff from Trump, what did you want Trump to do to get these supplies?
Sending FBI to inventory sounds like a great approach.
Buying inventory to send to needy areas is a good thing. I don't understand the angle here.