Companies retooling in coronavirus fight

Supplies provided, plus hotel rooms for health workers.

Major U.S. corporations continue to step up measures to help combat the coronavirus, from retooling plants and stepping up shipments of personal protective gear to providing temporary space for overworked medical staff.

Apple has sourced more than 20 million face masks through its supply chain, CEO Tim Cook said in a video posted on Twitter.

Apple hopes to quickly expand distribution beyond the U.S. It plans to ship over a million face shields to health care workers by the end of the week, and continue to send that many every week going forward, Cook said.

Ford Motor Co. has manufactured and shipped over 1 million clear plastic face shields to hospitals and first responders. The company sent its millionth protective shield to New York City as part of a shipment of more than 30,000 spokeswoman Elizabeth Kraft said.

Hilton and American Express are donating 1 million U.S. hotel rooms to medical workers who need to sleep, relax or isolate from their families. The program, which begins next week and runs through the end of May, will provide free rooms to doctors, nurses, paramedics and others, the companies said Monday.

American Express and Hilton are paying for the rooms, which are being provided at or below cost by Hilton franchisees. Hilton will offer the rooms through 10 professional organizations, including the American Hospital Association and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians.

The lodging industry is being devastated, with conferences, business and leisure travel at a standstill.