12-21-20 virus outbreak-wisconsin spending

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — An Associated Press analysis has found that Wisconsin spent at least $99 million on personal protective equipment and ventilators during the chaotic early months of the coronavirus pandemic. Data the AP obtained from states shows Wisconsin officials paid suppliers with in-state facilities only about $10 million for gear as they scoured the country to build a stockpile of supplies quickly. They paid high prices as states competed with each other for scare equipment. The data shows, for example, that the state paid an ACE Hardware in De Forest $19,799 for 2,100 N95 masks. That’s more than $9 per mask.