New York State announced it will produce 100,000 gallons of its own hand sanitizer for schools, prisons, and government agencies.

The production of the hand sanitizer comes in response to shortages in local government and state facilities.

The hand sanitizer, which will be given away for free to eligible institutions, is being made for $6 a gallon at Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Washington County.

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New York governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Monday during a press conference that the state will start producing 100,000 gallons of hand sanitizer a week to be given away to schools, prisons, and government agencies as well as the MTA.

The product, NYS Clean, costs $6 a gallon to manufacture and is made at Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Washington County and was created in response to local government citing a medical supply shortage and trouble acquiring hand sanitizer.

The production of the New York State product is also an attempt to combat price gouging of hand sanitizers, which Governor Cuomo said is an "egregious issue".

The hand sanitizer is "floral bouquet" scented and contains 75% alcohol, as opposed to the average 60% alcohol in many hand sanitizers, and is not available to the general public.

Other items experiencing shortages include face masks, hand sanitizer, oat milk, and nutrition bars.

The FDA also announced the first shortage of a drug due to coronavirus. The FDA has not yet released the name of the drug.

During the press conference Governor Cuomo also spoke about school-closing procedures, a bill for employee paid sick leave and stressed the risk the virus poses for the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions while emphasizing the need for people to stay calm.

Watch Governor Cuomo's entire press conference in the video below:

https://www.pscp.tv/NYGovCuomo/1ynJOprrpAVxR?t=3m49s