Supply Chain

Puritan Medical Products, one of the world's two major producers of COVID-19 testing swabs, is extending a furlough of 180 employees as demand for the tests falls, the Bangor Daily News reported July 8.  

Ten health systems have posted job listings for supply chain expertise in the last week:

Quidel is recalling its Lyra COVID-19 test because of a "significant" risk of false negative results in people infected with high amounts of the virus, the FDA said July 7.

Surmodics, an Eden Prairie, Minn.-based devicemaker, has acquired devicemaker Vetex Medical for $39.9 million, the companies announced July 6. 

U.S. hospitals are being forced to postpone surgeries in the face of a national blood shortage, CBS News reported July 6. 

Health care supply chains have the potential to become true strategic assets for their organizations. With the right people, processes and technology, supply chain can play a pivotal role in clinical operations and ultimately, impact patient outcomes.

HHS has updated its list of medical supplies and equipment protected from hoarding under an executive order issued in February, according to a July 6 news release. 

UnitedHealthcare named 10 labs to its 2021 Preferred Lab Network, which denotes select partnerships that are suggested to members based on care and cost. 

Hospitals across New York now have large stockpiles of personal protective equipment, thanks to a combination of state policy, market forces and timing, The Wall Street Journal reported July 1. 

The FDA said June 30 it is revoking emergency use authorizations for all face masks not approved by the CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, as well as decontamination systems used to reuse masks.