Please note the story you’re reading was published more than a day ago. COVID-19 news and recommendations change fast: Read the latest here to stay up-to-date. We’ve lifted our paywall on all essential news and updates about the coronavirus.
With Italy and France on lockdown due to the coronavirus, the fashion industry has been spurred into action. Fresh off the announcement that LVMH will make hand sanitizer in its perfume factories, the co-CEOs of Prada, Patrizio Bertelli and Miuccia Prada, have donated six ICUs to three Milanese hospitals.
Italy is in the middle of a two-week lockdown, and doctors are reportedly having to make decisions about who lives and who dies because the equipment is so scarce. Guidelines for the Italian College of Anesthesia, Analgesia, Resuscitation and Intensive Care say to prioritize “patients with the best chance of success.” The president for the college told the New York Times, “No one is getting kicked out, but we’re offering criteria of priority.” There are also inflatable, temporary annexes set up adjacent to hospitals to provide overflow.
Presumably, that will be what Prada and Bertelli’s efforts will go to. The statement said they were giving “two complete intensive care and resuscitation units each to Milan’s hospitals of Vittore Buzzi, Sacco and San Raffaele.” Generally the group’s statements are much longer than one sentence, but this one wasn’t, and it didn’t need to be. The situation is so dire it doesn’t warrant an explanation or a quote. As of Monday morning, 1,809 people have died in Italy.
Other fashion giants who have donated to the coronavirus crisis include Donatella Versace, who gave 200,000 euros; Armani, which donated 1.25 million euros; and Chiara Ferragni, who raised over 4 million euros in a Go Fund Me and personally donated 100,000 euros.
We’re committed to keeping our readers informed.
We’ve removed our paywall from essential coronavirus news stories. Become a subscriber to support our journalists. Subscribe now.