NYC mayor: 'We haven't seen any action from the federal government'

"We cannot wait until people start really dying in large numbers to start production, especially of more complicated equipment like ventilators and hospital beds," Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat, told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union." "We need to start this production right now to get ready for the surge that is coming in two to three weeks."

The President has repeatedly said he's invoking the act to ramp up production of medical supplies needed to combat the virus, but has not wielded his federal powers yet as health officials voice alarm about potential shortages of lifesaving medical supplies like ventilators, masks and gowns for doctors on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

Ocasio-Cortez, in describing the situation at hospitals in New York and across the country, said, "There are not enough face masks, gloves, ventilators, hospital beds to get us through this. Many hospitals are already at capacity or are approaching capacity. And there is kind of no real stream in sight from the federal government on where these materials are coming from."

"You know, companies are donating what they can. That is great. It is not enough," she continued. "And the fact that the President has not really invoked the Defense Production Act for the purpose of emergency manufacture is going to cost lives."

New York has the most confirmed cases of the virus in the US, with more than 12,000 confirmed cases in the state and more than 6,000 in New York City alone. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has declared New York a "major disaster" as cases surge there. Mayor Bill de Blasio told CNN on Sunday that "the worst is yet to come," as "we have seen nothing from the federal government."

"It sure feels like we are on our own," de Blasio told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "We haven't seen any action from the federal government."

On Saturday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced 1 million N95 respirator masks were being sent to New York City.