HIDA Recommends Policies To Diversify Sourcing For Critical Medical Supplies

Urges federal support and funding for a strategy in partnership with private sector

Alexandria, VA, March 15, 2021 - The Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) has released recommendations for policies to diversify manufacturing and sourcing of pandemic medical supplies such as personal protective equipment (PPE) to build up domestic capacity and help avoid future shortages.

“These policies would enable a public-private partnership to increase the availability of medical supplies while allowing the supply chain to continue getting them quickly into the hands of healthcare providers,” said Health Industry Distributors Association President & CEO Matthew J. Rowan.

HIDA’s policy recommendations include:

• Prioritize companies with experience in healthcare to receive government support to on-shore production
• Create a comprehensive plan that ensures government incentives and commercial market investments complement and reinforce each other
• Use trade agreements, federal purchases, and reimbursement policies to provide a consistent demand signal to the commercial market and ensure long term viability.

About HIDA
The Health Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) represents the country’s medical product distributors – the nation’s essential link between manufacturers and patient caregivers. HIDA members offer critical services increasing the efficiency of U.S. healthcare providers, including hospitals, nursing homes, laboratories, home care, and physician practices. For more information, visit HIDA.org.