As U.S. virus cases exceed 100,000, doctors decry scarcity of drugs and equipment

A commuter on the Staten Island Ferry wears a protective face mask and sits alone during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., March 26, 2020. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Doctors and nurses on the front lines of the U.S. coronavirus crisis pleaded on Friday for more protective gear and equipment to treat waves of patients expected to overwhelm hospitals as the sum of known U.S. infections climbed well past 100,000, with more than 1,600 dead.

Physicians have called particular attention to a desperate need for additional ventilators, machines that help patients breathe and are widely needed for those suffering from COVID-19, the respiratory ailment caused by the highly contagious novel coronavirus.