Supply Chain

Most medical devices, including many implants, are being cleared for sale by the FDA without tests for safety or effectiveness, KFF Health News reported Dec. 21.

Northwell Health plans to annually treat more than 500,000 pounds of regulated medical waste in its core laboratory, which processes samples from more than 20,000 patients every day. 

The federal government paid $123 million to build the nation's first plant to reproduce synthetic rubber into nitrile gloves, but after medical supply shortages ebbed, the Virginia facility sits unused, The Washington Post reported Dec. 28. 

While the supply chain stabilized as COVID-19 ebbed, thousands of drug delivery devices, syringes and eye drops fell into shortage in 2023. Here are eight noteworthy shortages from the past 12 months:

NYC Health + Hospitals' Danielle DiBari, PharmD, and the system's supply team are working to establish a Diverse Supplier Council to cement equity throughout the hospital supply chain. 

Philips North America is recalling 150 MRI machines in the U.S. due to explosion risks. The FDA has classified the recall as a Class 1, the most serious type of recall. 

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, states scrambled to secure masks, medical gowns and other personal protective equipment for healthcare workers. Much of those items have sat in stockpiles and with product expiration dates approaching, states are throwing out…

Olympus, a Japan-based medical devicemaker, is warning customers of more than 17,000 airway products that might burn patients or catch fire, the FDA said Dec. 19. 

Charlotte, N.C.-based Atrium Health recently joined the Medical Device Information Analysis and Sharing partnership, which aims to inject transparency into the medical supply industry. 

At the urging of White House officials, manufacturers have confirmed they will make an additional 230,000 doses of respiratory syncytial virus immunizations available for infants in January, alleviating a nationwide shortage.