It’s why Congressman Andy Kim, a member of the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Crisis, asked Get Us PPE founder Dr. And with the recent outbreak in the White House, which has now reached Pentagon leadership, it’s clear that PPE is an important national security tool. PPE is one of the best weapons we have in the fight against coronavirus. Can the DPA be used to increase PPE production?Ībsolutely. The DPA was enacted in 1950, during the Korean War, but it has been used during the Cold War and for other means of defense, such as developing new technologies and combatting cyberespionage. We created this quick DPA FAQ to clarify how the DPA can help get PPE production back on track, why PPE is crucial for national security, and what you can do to help. In its reporting, the New York Times cited our PPE Shortage Index data for August, which showed that 77% of facilities reported that they have run out of at least one type of PPE - a huge problem as the country anticipates a second wave of coronavirus infections. What’s more, the DPA was deployed too late. As reported by the Washington Post, millions of dollars dispersed to the Pentagon through the DPA were given to defense contractors rather than to medical supply companies, as originally intended.
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You can’t make enough gloves if one hand doesn’t know what the other is doing.Ī recent article in the New York Times investigated the use of the DPA to respond to the coronavirus and found that it was not being used to its full capacity to fix the nation’s PPE shortage. Also, it’s hard for private businesses to know what types of PPE to make and how much, if there isn’t a central tracking system directing the effort.
Ĭan businesses make more PPE without the DPA? Yes, but they’re unlikely to do so if they don’t believe it’s profitable. It can also be used to prevent price gouging on these supplies, such as the shocking 300% markups on N95 masks seen in California. It gives the President power to make private businesses produce supplies that can protect and defend American people, such as PPE.
create a national strategy to respond to an emergency. The DPA is a vital tool in helping the U.S. Due to the pandemic, a handful of acronyms known mostly to infectious disease specialists have now become household terms: PPE, PRC tests, and for those who follow politics, the DPA (Defense Production Act).
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