News PEARL RIVER, N.Y., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- VersaMed, a world leader in manufacturing durable, disaster-ready ventilators, announced today that it has been awarded a contract to provide 72 ventilators to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC DOHMH). NYC DOHMH selected the VersaMed iVent201 over offerings from several other competing vendors. The NYC DOHMH contract award is the most recent in a series of major VersaMed government contract. In the past two months, VersaMed has signed contracts to be the primary ventilator provider in several states and municipalities across the country. These wins, in key metro markets, are a testament to the quality of the iVent being an excellent solution for disaster deployment. The iVent was specifically chosen in these markets for natural disaster and pandemic situations that could lead to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS). The contract covers VersaMed's specially-tailored iVent201 Disaster Preparedness ventilator, a lightweight, battery-powered critical care ventilator that is transportable and versatile. The iVent family of ventilators uses innovative technology to provide a solution for healthcare service providers seeking to deliver high-quality care in the face of rising costs and declining budgets for healthcare services. The iVent's benefits include the fact that it is ready to use in a disaster setting, it is proven in a critical care setting, its safety for patients, its ease of use and its value. The iVent was determined to be the best suited for the NYC pandemic ventilator stockpile pilot program, and has already been selected for its durability by various militaries around the world, including the U.S. Armed Forces and the Israeli Defense Forces. VersaMed's ventilator products are considered to be a respected brand in over 90 countries worldwide and are widely used in ICU's, sub-acute, long-term care, nursing homes and home care environments. "VersaMed's mission is to develop ICU-grade ventilators for use in disaster environments and the iVent is the most reliable, easy to use, battle-tested ventilator on the market," said Kevin Plihal, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for VersaMed. "VersaMed is proud to work with New York City to protect its residents and provide them with reliable medical care when they need it most." About VersaMed VersaMed Medical Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of computer-based, smart mechanical ventilators. The Company designs and manufactures the iVent line of advanced life support ventilators -- ICU-grade ventilators that are compact and portable enough to go anywhere -- and sells them around the world to the hospital, sub-acute, emergency transport and homecare markets. About the iVent201 With the iVent201, a caregiver can seamlessly transfer a patient between leak-tolerant, non-invasive and invasive modes without having to switch machines. The iVent201's "Quick Start" capability allows it to be set up in seconds even by entry-level personnel. At the same time, the iVent201 provides comprehensive advanced diagnostic features including loops, 14 parameters of trending, graphics and data recall. Not only is the iVent201 economical, it provides groundbreaking comfort and patient compatibility. The iVent201's Adaptive Flow and easy exhale features provide unprecedented patient comfort. These breakthrough technologies keep the patient from "fighting the ventilator" by letting their needs spontaneously determine flow rate.