A House subcommittee is investigating a government deal to buy $70 million worth of ventilators for the coronavirus pandemic response that a Washington Post investigation found were inadequate for treating most covid-19 patients.

Last spring, as part of its effort to increase the number of ventilators amid the crisis, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Defense Logistics Agency purchased 11,200 AutoMedx SAVe II+ ventilators from Combat Medical Systems, which distributes the devices. But the ventilators were inadequate for treating covid-19 patients and remain in warehouses, according to Stephanie Bialek, a spokeswoman for the Strategic National Stockpile.

The Democratic-controlled House subcommittee on economic and consumer policy, part of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, has been investigating the federal approach to ventilator procurement since mid-April, when a White House-led task force sought to quickly procure medical supplies as the virus spread.

Read more in the Washington Post