NY-27 candidate starts online petition to keep hospital supplies in WNY
Beth Parlato
Beth Parlato, a former Darien town justice who is running for the 27th Congressional District seat, has started a petition at wnylivesmatter.com to push back on an executive order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
The governor on Friday announced that 20 percent of unused ventilators in upstate hospitals needed to be redistributed to other hospitals downstate and Long Island where there is currently the greatest need. The faceshields, gowns, N-95 masks and other personal protective gear also could be redistricted as part of the governor’s order.
The hospitals that share will get their ventilators back or be paid to buy new ones. They would also have access to the state’s stockpile of supplies if they are hit with a wave of Covid-19 cases, the governor said.
“Governor Cuomo issued an executive order that he is taking ventilators from upstate New York to bring to New York City,” Parlato said in a news release today. “He is deploying the National Guard to remove essential supplies from our hospitals to take downstate. We need these ventilators in Western New York to fight COVID-19! WNY medical professionals have been working tirelessly over the past few weeks, and they are running out of supplies.”
Many state legislators, elected officials and hospital leaders from upstate have told the governor they are concerned about his order, that it leaves their communities in a vulnerable position if the Covid-19 cases rise in their communities.
“It is critical that our needs are considered,” Parlato said. “The people of NY-27 deserve to have their voices heard. That is why we have launched a petition at www.wnylivesmatter.com for us to tell Governor Cuomo that no life is more important than another.”
