--- title: "Elon Musk is Shipping Free Ventilators to Hospitals Worldwide" description: "Elon Musk announced his renewed efforts to supply hospitals around the country — and internationally — with ventilators amid the coronavirus outbreak." date: "2020-04-01" modified: "2020-04-01" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musk-shipping-free-ventilators-hospitals-worldwide" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "the digest" - "ventilator" - "ventilators" --- # Elon Musk is Shipping Free Ventilators to Hospitals Worldwide ![Elon Musk announced his renewed efforts to supply hospitals around the country — and internationally — with ventilators amid the coronavirus outbreak.]() *\Image: Steve Jurvetson\* ## Free of Charge Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk has announced renewed efforts to supply hospitals around the country — and internationally — with life-saving equipment amid the coronavirus outbreak. "We have extra FDA-approved ventilators," [he tweeted](). "Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device and shipping cost are free." He did, however, have one caveat: the ventilators need to be put to use immediately: "Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse." ## "Heroic Effort" The news comes after Musk [sourced some 1,255 ventilators]() from Chinese manufacturers and [donated]() them to hospitals in the Los Angeles area last week. "If you want a free ventilator installed, please let us know!" he [tweeted]() at the time. California governor Gavin Newsom praised the move at the time, calling it a "heroic effort," [according to *Bloomberg*](). ## Vent Rush Hospitals across the country are quickly [running out of ventilators](), machines that play a crucial role in providing care for a growing number of COVID-19 patients. Healthcare practitioners now have an awful decision to make: which patients get access to a limited number of ventilators? Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump used the Defense Production Act to [encourage]() companies including General Motors to produce ventilators. Despite severe shortages in the US, Trump [announced plans yesterday]() to send excess ventilators to Europe. **READ MORE:** [Tesla offers ventilators free of cost to hospitals, Musk says]() \[*The Hill*\] **More on Musk:** *[“Heroic Effort”: Elon Musk Donates 1,250 Ventilators to Hospitals]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()