Trump Slams Inspector General Report With Details About Hospital Shortages

President Donald Trump slammed the report made by an inspector general Monday, which found that several hospitals were facing a severe shortage of supplies in their fight against the novel coronavirus.

"Did I hear the word inspector general?" Trump said when questioned by a reporter about the report. "It's just wrong."

While Trump did not give any specific evidence as to why the findings in the 34-page report provided by the inspector general were wrong, he implied in general that he doesn’t trust the inspector generals. He also questioned who this inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services is.

"It still could be her opinion. When was she appointed? Do me a favor and let me know. Let me know now. I have to know," the President said at the briefing.

Trump’s comments were directed at Principal Deputy Inspector General Christi Grimm, who released a report earlier on Monday based on interviews with administrators from randomly selected 324 hospitals between March 23 and March 27.

The report found severe shortages of supply and delay in conducting tests. The wait time for hospitals was as long as seven days, according to the report. The report also found that there was a shortage of protective equipment as the hospitals did not have enough masks to protect their workers who were at risk of coming in contact with the coronavirus infected patients.

Hospitals also faced a shortage of ventilators, cleaning supplies, IV Poles, bed sheets and other basic equipment, Politico reported.

"The level of anxiety among staff is like nothing I’ve ever seen," the report quotes a hospital administrator as saying.

Trump, however, refuted the findings of the report and instead said that the U.S. has now done more testing than any other country. He then proceeded to criticize the reporter for asking about the report.

“You should say, 'Congratulations. Great job' instead of being so horrid," Trump told the reporter.

Brett Giroir, an assistant secretary of Health and Human Services, noted that the report’s survey was carried out a long time ago and that situation had improved at the hospitals since then. The American Hospital Association (AHA), however, said that the situation captured in the report was accurate and reflected the crisis the hospitals are going through.

“[The report] accurately captures the crisis that hospitals and health systems, physicians and nurses on the front lines face of not having enough personal protective equipment (PPE), medical supplies and equipment in their fight against COVID-19," the AHA said.