Chest Drain (Thoracostomy) Pump as Alternative to Ventilator?

I had a needle thoracostomy for a collapsed lung (pneumothorax) when a teenager. The operation took 5 minutes, was done in my hospital room as I watched and was almost painless (OK the initial anesthetic hurt a bit). They slid a metal needle between the ribs into the pleural cavity. It was attached to a hose and a small pump (looked like an aquarium pump) that provided negative pressure. I spent 3 days in the hospital. Use and removal was painless: they slid the needle out and put a bandaid on it.

Rather than build complex, cumbersome and expensive to run ventilators for Covid-19 patients, why not use the far simpler chest drain to remove fluid from the lungs?