Trump to visit Pennsylvania medical equipment distributor on Thursday

President Trump will visit a medical equipment distributor in Allentown, Pa., on Thursday to highlight federal efforts to ramp up coronavirus testing and the production of critical supplies needed to combat the outbreak.

Trump’s trip to the Owens and Minor Inc. factory will be his second major trip outside the White House since late March.

It comes as the president seeks to highlight his administration’s response to the pandemic and express optimism about the path forward to economic recovery as states begin to loosen restrictions meant to curb the spread of the virus, which has killed about 80,000 people in the U.S. and resulted in steep job losses as a result of business closures.

Trump will tour the distribution center and deliver remarks at the facility, according to a White House official. The trip was first reported by The Morning Call.

“The President is expected to discuss his Administration’s efforts to utilize the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to lead the world in COVID-19 testing, as well as his actions to replenish and bolster the SNS so that the America is never caught off guard again,” the White House official said.

“The Trump Administration has taken unprecedented steps to mobilize these resources to expeditiously respond to the COVID-19 outbreak, which includes rapidly building up America’s testing capacity,” the official said. 

Trump touted U.S. testing capacity in a press conference earlier Monday, saying his administration had “prevailed” on ramping up testing resources that have allowed the country to conduct more than 9 million tests. Still, current testing capabilities fall short of the level some public health experts say is necessary to safely reopen the country.

Trump is gradually looking to increase his travel as the curve of coronavirus infections declines nationally. Last Tuesday, the president visited a Honeywell facility producing N95 respirator masks in Phoenix.

The medical equipment distributor Trump will visit on Thursday has sent millions of N95 masks, surgical gowns and gloves to medical facilities across the country amid the pandemic, according to the White House official.

With Thursday’s trip, Trump will have made 18 trips as president to Pennsylvania, a state he narrowly won during the 2016 presidential election. Recent polls have shown former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, with a lead over Trump in the state.