medically necessary

Health systems pushing medical suppliers on sustainability

(Photo: Paul Brennan)

This is an excerpt from Medically Necessary, a health care supply chain newsletter. Subscribe here.

The trend: As hospital systems aim to reduce their carbon emissions and other pollutants, they’re pushing manufacturers, distributors and other suppliers to adopt more aggressive environmental goals.

Last year, Kaiser Permanente became the first U.S. hospital system to reduce its net carbon emissions to zero by cutting its own energy use and investing in projects that remove carbon from the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/health-systems-pushing-medical-suppliers-on-sustainability

Questions remain over feasibility of White House testing goals

Volunteers with the Medical Reserve Corps in Philadelphia administer COVID-19 tests in 2020. (Photo: HHS)

This is an excerpt from Medically Necessary, a health care supply chain newsletter. Subscribe here.

The plan: Last week, the White House released an ambitious plan to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Diagnostic testing will play an enormous role in achieving the plan’s goals. 

The plan will require large employers to get workers vaccinated or tested weekly and encourages entertainment venues and schools to require frequent testing. 

It’s difficult to predict how the plan will affect demand for...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/questions-remain-over-feasibility-of-white-house-testing-goals

Google allows N95 masks on shopping platform

(Photo: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

The news: Throughout the pandemic, Google prevented companies from marketing N95 respirators on its shopping and advertising platforms.

The goal was to protect consumers from counterfeit products or price gouging and make sure health care workers had adequate access to high-quality masks, which were in short supply for much of 2020. 

Other tech companies have taken similar measures. Facebook has temporarily prohibited ads for medical masks, such as N95s.

Over the summer, some mask manufacturers...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/google-allows-n95-masks-on-shopping-platform

White House wants billions for vaccine, PPE supply chains

President Joe Biden receives a briefing on COVID-19 in July. (Photo: White House/Adam Schultz)

This is an excerpt from Medically Necessary, a health care supply chain newsletter. Subscribe here.

The plan: A White House plan to counter future pandemics includes billions of dollars for efforts to speed up production and distribution of new vaccines, diagnostic tests and personal protective equipment. 

The $65 billion plan, released last Friday, also requests funding for surveillance of new pathogens, research into future therapeutics and expanding the public health workforce. In addition,...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/white-house-wants-billions-for-vaccine-ppe-supply-chains

Delta adds uncertainty to health care supply chain

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientist reviews COVID-19 antibody test samples. (Photo: CDC/James Gathany)

This is an excerpt from Medically Necessary, a health care supply chain newsletter. Subscribe here.

The challenge: Near the end of June, the number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. reached the lowest levels since the spring of 2020, and demand for elective procedures and prescription drugs had essentially returned to pre-pandemic levels. 

Some companies were designing game plans for transitioning to a post-pandemic environment with lower case numbers. 

In July, COVID-19 cases, driven by the more...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/delta-adds-uncertainty-to-health-care-supply-chain

Freight costs, inflation hit health care supply chain

The story: The high price of freight and raw materials continues to be a major problem for a number of companies in the health care supply chain. 

In recent earnings calls, leaders from 3M, Becton, Dickinson and Co. (BD), Cardinal Health, Owens and Minor, and AmerisourceBergen all called out the increasing cost of freight, logistics and raw materials as a big hurdle for the remainder of 2021.

“What we have seen is a broad-based increase in all commodities. … And then logistics cost has continued...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/freight-costs-inflation-hit-health-care-supply-chain

Excess PPE cuts into profits for distributors, manufacturers

The story: Excess inventory of personal protective equipment and COVID-19 tests are cutting into profits for distributors and manufacturers as demand falls. Several companies recently recorded charges related to obsolete inventory or donated excess products.   

Those actions took place when the U.S. vaccination rates were rising, COVID-19 case numbers were falling and demand for PPE was waning. 

As the delta variant causes COVID-19 cases to rise in the U.S., there are signs that demand for PPE is...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/excess-ppe-cuts-into-profits-for-distributors-manufacturers

Health lobby leans in hard on domestic manufacturing

(Photo: Architect of the Capitol)

The story: Policymakers are enthusiastic about supporting domestic manufacturing of drugs and medical devices, and health care companies want to make sure they get their share of that support. 

Distributors, manufacturers, group purchasing organizations and industry trade groups have all included domestic production of medical goods in their recent lobbying efforts.

In June, a group of companies from across the health care supply chain formed a new trade group called Securing America’s Medicines...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/health-lobby-leans-in-hard-on-domestic-manufacturing

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