Supply Chain

The CDC and the National Institutes of Health said March 31 they are launching an initiative to help figure out if frequent, widespread use of rapid COVID-19 tests slows transmission of the virus. 

The FDA March 31 authorized two rapid, at-home COVID-19 tests, a move advocates called a major breakthrough for at-home testing, The Hill reported. 

The California Nurses Association issued a statement March 31 saying it welcomes a new state law requiring hospitals to maintain three-month stockpiles of personal protective equipment. 

Bioventus said March 30 that it has acquired Bioness, a California-based medical devicemaker, for up to $110 million. 

Peter Navarro, the White House's trade adviser under former President Donald Trump, used his own strategy for obtaining medical supply contracts early on in the COVID-19 pandemic after the federal government didn't implement a national strategy, according to documents released…

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

Corning, a glass vial maker based in Corning, N.Y., has received an additional $57 million in funding from the federal government that will allow it to substantially increase its production of vials for COVID-19 vaccines. 

Online pharmacy Valisure has detected a carcinogen called benzene in 44 brands of hand sanitizer that entered the market during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The U.S. has removed 25 million isolation gowns from the strategic national stockpile over concerns that they may not provide adequate protection to healthcare workers, Bloomberg reported March 25. 

Cardinal Health began working with Chicago-based freight tracking software startup FourKites last March on a pilot to track shipments of personal protective equipment between manufacturing plants and Cardinal's distribution centers, according to The Wall Street Journal. Cardinal and FourKites, which…