HHS Secretary Azar on 2/28/2020 on the Defense Production Act: “I Don’t Have Any Procurements I Need It For Now, But If I Need It, We’ll Use It.” [New York Times, 2/28/20]
NYC Physician on 3/20/2020: “We have known for six weeks, and there was literally zero response and preparedness…The entire health-care system is a massive failure on a federal level.” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
For several weeks, hospitals have been warning they are on the brink of running out of crucial medical supplies like masks and gloves. But President Donald Trump is only now deciding to implement the Defense Production Act as the shortage crisis is upon our health care system.
As experts and their own Administration officials have acknowledged, they could have taken this step weeks ago when the current dire situation could have been avoided.
SINCE AT LEAST FEBRUARY 2020, STATE AND LOCAL OFFICIALS HAVE HIGHLIGHTED THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP COULD USE DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT TO PRODUCE MEDICAL SUPPLIES
On February 26, 2020, New York City Commissioner Of Emergency Management Deanne Criswell Highlighted That The Federal Government Could Enact The Defense Production Act To Produce Medical Equipment. “Mayor Bill de Blasio and city health officials said New York City has distributed 1.5 million surgical masks to hospitals and first responders, but that falls short of what would be needed to manage an outbreak of the novel coronavirus… ‘Everyone is competing for masks,’ de Blasio said. ‘If the normal private sector can’t get them to us, the federal government will have to step in.’ Commissioner of Emergency Management Deanne Criswell said, if necessary, the federal government could enact the Defense Production Act to require manufacturers to produce masks for medical professionals and first responders. The act allows such a move if deemed necessary for national defense.” [Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 2/26/20]
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS ACKNOWLEDGED SINCE FEBRUARY THAT IT COULD HAVE USED THE DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT TO INCREASE PRODUCTION OF MEDICAL SUPPLIES
During A February 27, 2020 Interagency Call, Officials From The Department Of Health And Human Services And The Department Of Homeland Security Discussed Using The Defense Production Act To Manufacture Medical Equipment. “Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar told lawmakers this week that the United States needs a stockpile of about 300 million N95 face masks – respiratory protective devices – for medical workers to combat the spread of the virus. The United States currently has only a fraction of that number available for immediate use, Azar testified. During an interagency call on Wednesday, officials from HHS and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) discussed the possibility of invoking the Defense Production Act for the manufacture of “personal protective equipment” that can be worn to prevent infection, according to a DHS official. Such equipment can include masks, gloves and body suits.” [Reuters, 2/27/20]
- Health And Human Services Secretary Alex Azar Acknowledged That Accessing Medical Equipment “Could Get Tough” If The U.S. Was Down The Domestic Capability To Produce Because “Very Little Of This Stuff Is Apparently Made In The States.” “Such equipment can include masks, gloves and body suits. Azar said at a congressional hearing on Wednesday that China controls ‘a lot of the raw materials as well as the manufacturing capacity’ related to face masks. ‘Very little of this stuff is apparently made in the (United) States, so if we’re down to domestic capability to produce, it could get tough,’ the DHS official told Reuters.” [Reuters, 2/27/20]
On February 27, 2020, A White House Official Confirmed To Reuters That It Was Considering Using The Defense Production Act To Manufacture Protective Gear. “A White House official confirmed that the administration was exploring the use of the law to spur manufacturing of protective gear. Both the DHS official and the White House requested anonymity to discuss the issue. ‘Let’s say ‘Company A’ makes a multitude of respiratory masks but they spend 80% of their assembly lines on masks that painters wear and only 20% on the N95,’ the White House official said. ‘We will have the ability to tell corporations, ‘No, you change your production line so it is now 80% of the N95 masks and 20% of the other.’ ’ ‘It allows you to basically direct things happening that need to get done,’ the official added.” [Reuters, 2/27/20]
On February 28, 2020, Secretary Of Health And Human Services Alex Azar Said The Trump Administration Might Use The Defense Production Act To Produce Medical Supplies Like Masks, Gowns, And Gloves During The Coronavirus Pandemic. “The Trump administration may use a 70-year-old law to speed up the manufacturing of medical supplies before a coronavirus outbreak, Alex M. Azar II, the health secretary, said on Friday, a seeming acknowledgment that the virus poses a threat beyond the reassurances of President Trump. The Defense Production Act, passed by Congress in 1950 during the Korean War, allows the president to expand production of the materials for national security purposes. Mr. Azar said that the federal government could move to expedite certain contracts, including for supplies like face masks, gowns and gloves. Mr. Azar has said that 300 million of a type of mask known as N95 are needed for the emergency medical stockpile for health care workers.” [New York Times, 2/28/20]
- Health And Human Services Secretary Alex Azar Said Of The Defense Production Act: “I Don’t Have Any Procurements I Need It For Now, But If I Need It, We’ll Use It.” “‘I don’t have any procurements I need it for now, but if I need it, we’ll use it,’ Mr. Azar told reporters at a White House briefing on the administration’s request to Congress for emergency funds to respond to the virus.” [New York Times, 2/28/20]
BY MID-MARCH, HOUSE AND SENATE DEMOCRATS PUBLICLY CALLED FOR TRUMP TO ENACT THE DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT TO PRODUCE MEDICAL SUPPLIES AS HEALTH OFFICIALS REPORTED SHORTAGES
March 13, 2020: In A Letter To President Trump, 57 House Democrats Called For Using The Defense Production Act To Increase Capacity For Coronavirus Testing And Produce More Protective Equipment And Ventilators. In a letter to President Trump, 57 House Democrats urged the president to use the powers afforded by the Defense Production Act of 1950 to begin mass production of supplies needed to address the Coronavirus pandemic, writing: “The need for supplies to properly address the pandemic is acute… It is critical that we massively increase testing capacity to identify cases and, accordingly, slow the spread of COVID-19.” [Representative Andy Levin, Letter to President Trump, 3/13/20]
March 17, 2020: Senator Sherrood Brown, Leader Chuck Schumer, And Twenty-Six Democratic Senators Urged Trump To Use His Defense Production Act Authorities To Help Address Widespread Shortages Of Medical Equipment. In a letter to President Trump, Brown and twenty-seven Senators wrote: “There are widespread reports of shortages in personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilators, diagnostic test kits, and other medical supplies that require medical professionals to ration existing supplies. The Department of Defense, in collaboration with Governors and appropriate federal agencies, should immediately undertake a national assessment of the supply and anticipated needs for PPE, ventilators, diagnostic test kits, and other needed medical supplies to support the use of its DPA authorities, as well as determining the potential use of the Defense Logistics Agency to support the rapid deployment of needed equipment, including from existing reserves.” [Senator Sherrod Brown, Letter to President Trump, 3/17/20]
March 17, 2020: New York City Council Health Committee Chair Mark Levine Said “We Are BEGGING, PLEADING” That The Federal Government Mobilize Production And Distribution Of Medical Supplies And Equipment. Levine tweeted: “Some medical providers in NYC are already running low on masks, with supplies as short as 7-10 days. We are BEGGING, PLEADING that the fed gov’t mobilize production and distribution of medical supplies and equipment. There is no solution to this problem without federal action.” [Twitter, Mark Levine, 3/17/20]
NOW, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S FAILURE TO USE DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT WEEKS AGO HAS LED TO TREMENDOUS SHORTAGES OF MASKS AND MEDICAL EQUIPMENT
A New York City Physician Described Being On The Frontlines Of The Coronavirus Crisis With Dwindling Supplies As “Like Going To War With A Butter Knife.” “‘It’s like going to war with a butter knife.’ That’s the description one physician in New York City offered for how he and his colleagues are trying to suppress the coronavirus, even as they deal with dwindling stocks of health-care supplies and personal protective equipment. ‘This is a disaster. [Our health-care workers] are risking their lives,’ the physician told me. ‘We need to advocate for our frontline workers.’” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
A Fresno, California Surgeon Described Working Through Medical Supply Shortages During The Coronavirus Pandemic As Being “At War With No Ammo.” “‘We are at war with no ammo,’ said a surgeon in Fresno, Calif., who said she had no access to even the most basic surgical masks in her outpatient clinic and has a limited supply of the tight-fitting respirator masks in the operating room. Like many doctors interviewed, she asked not to be quoted by name, worried about retribution from administrators for speaking out.” [New York Times, 3/19/20]
A New York City Emergency Room Physician Criticized The Shortage Of Coronavirus Testing Kits, Saying “We Are Flying Blind Right Now.” “A New York City emergency-room physician echoed that sentiment. ‘We are flying blind right now.’ She pointed to the lack of testing kits available in the United States. South Korea, a country of 51 million, has aggressively tested more than 270,000 people. By contrast, the United States, which often boasts about being the most powerful country in the world, has tested only about 82,000. She said the turnaround time to obtain results for the very few tests she has on hand is about three days. Health-care workers often don’t have access to the testing kits that magically appear for celebrities and politicians. They are running out of the life-saving medical supplies they need to do their jobs.” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
March 19, 2020: The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention Suggested Health Care Workers Cope With A Lack Of Personal Protective Equipment By Using Bandanas And Scarves In Place Of N95 Masks. “To cope with the burgeoning coronavirus crisis, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told nurses to use bandanas and scarves as last-resort masks. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, meanwhile, have access to N95 masks as they apprehend immigrants during a national pandemic.” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
A New York City Emergency Room Doctor Criticized The United States’ Medical Supply Shortages, Saying “We Had Three Months Of Warning From China And Then Europe, And We Didn’t Take It Seriously.” “Almost every health-care professional I interviewed criticized the government’s lack of preparedness. ‘The biggest mistake we’ve made is that we awakened to this problem too late,’ said the New York emergency-room doctor. ‘We had three months of warning from China and then Europe, and we didn’t take it seriously.’” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
A New York City Physician Said Of Medical Supply Shortages: “We Have Known For Six Weeks, And There Was Literally Zero Response And Preparedness.” “‘We have known for six weeks, and there was literally zero response and preparedness,’ echoed another physician from New York City. ‘The entire health-care system is a massive failure on a federal level.’” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
An Attending At Virginia’s Inova Loudoun Hospital Explained That N95 Mask Shortages Had Led Doctors To Keep One Mask Per Shift, Saying “After We’re Done Seeing The Patient, We Put It In A Paper Bag With Our Name On It… It’s Frightening.” “Furkan Shinaishin, an attending emergency-medicine physician at Inova Loudoun Hospital, is more desperate. “Because of our shortage of masks, we keep one N95 mask per shift. After we’re done seeing the patient, we put it in a paper bag with our name on it. When it’s time to see the next patient, we put the same mask back on. It’s frightening.” She said because there’s no way to sterilize the mask, she and her colleagues were told to put a surgical mask on top of the N95 mask.” [The Atlantic, 3/20/20]
The George Washington University Hospital Had Begun To Ration Medical Supplies To Prepare For Shortages, Instructing Health Care Workers To Use A Respirator Mask Five Time Before Discarding It. “Several large hospital chains said they had adequate supplies for now, though they have taken steps to ration their use. The George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C., has told heath care workers they can use a respirator mask five times before discarding it, and it is keeping its supply of masks under lock and key. ‘We’ve experienced outright theft, with the general public walking into our building and walking right out,’ said Bruno Petinaux, the hospital’s chief medical officer.” [New York Times, 3/19/20]