Canadians paid Québec supplier ‘top dollar’ for COVID ventilators it later scrapped
https://www.rebelnews.com/canadians_paid_qu_bec_supplier_top_dollar_for_covid_ventilators_it_later_scrapped
Records show the Department of Health paid Canadian Aviation Electronics up to a 49% premium over other suppliers. The equivalent of $28,250 per device exceeds Baylis Medical ($23,730), StarFish Medical ($22,600) and Thornhill Medical ($18,993).
Canadian taxpayers paid a premium on COVID ventilators from CAE Incorporated of Montréal, formerly Canadian Aviation Electronics (CAE). Almost all 8,200 units were "slated for sale as scrap metal."
Records show the medical supplier received $231,650,000 for ventilators at $28,250 per unit—the highest unit cost during the pandemic.
Then-Industry Minister Navdeep Bains signed the contract following a private conversation with the company’s CEO, reported Blacklock’s Reporter.
"When it comes to CAE, it’s a great Canadian success story," Bains testified at 2020 hearings of the Commons industry committee. "This is a company that is a world leader in flight simulations," he said.
The Québec-made ventilators were later scrapped for metal, Access To Information records show.