'We Have Extra FDA-Approved Ventilators,' Says Elon Musk, Announcing Free Worldwide Delivery

Tesla CEO Elon Musk just announced that his company has FDA-approved ventilators, in a tweet. Musk and Tesla plan to ship ventilators worldwide within delivery regions, at absolutely no cost, including shipping.

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Elon Musk's Tesla will ship free FDA-approved ventilators

Elon Musk — the CEO of Tesla — has announced that he and his company will ship sorely-needed FDA-approved ventilators to Tesla's delivery regions for free, with no charge for shipping whatsoever, according to a recent tweet.

We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please me or @Tesla know.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 31, 2020

"We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please [let] me or @Tesla know."

Elon Musk's ventilators: unknown quantity, shipped globally

Judging from Tesla's interactive "Find Us" webpage, it looks like delivery regions include countries in North America; U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Much of Europe is also within Tesla's delivery region, and in Asia, the countries of Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea could also see free deliveries shortly.

However, Tesla has not said precisely how many ventilators it can offer, or how it will assign priority to requests, according to Reuters. Governments across the planet have asked aerospace companies and automakers to help them acquire or manufacture ventilators and other medical equipment amid a wild coronavirus outbreak, which more than 770,000 people globally have contracted, with more than 37,500 dead.

Earlier this week, the automaker Ford Motor Co. said it will move forward with the production of 50,000 ventilators through the next 100 days in a Michigan-based plant, in a joint project with General Electric's healthcare unit — after which the partnership will develop 30,000 per month as needed for coronavirus patient treatment.

Last week, Musk donated more than 1,200 ventilators to California officials for use in hospitals treating coronavirus patients, according to a local news website. Specifically, Musk said the devices were bought in China and airlifted to the American state, tweeting: "China had an oversupply, so we bought 1255 FDA-approved ResMed, Philips & Medtronic ventilators on Friday night and airshipped them to LA. If you want a free ventilator installed, please let us know!"

This is a developing story in a world stricken by a devastating coronavirus pandemic, so be sure to check back for forthcoming updates.

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to clarify statements made in a tweet by Musk. It is unknown how many ventilators will be delivered as a result of this announcement, how Tesla will prioritize requests, or precisely how many ventilators Tesla has. A paragraph was added to confirm these unknowns. Musk also stipulated that free delivery of the ventilators would only apply to areas within Tesla's delivery region. A paragraph was added to this article listing all known regions to which Tesla electric vehicles are delivered.