Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Government To Buy 167M Masks From 3M For Front-Line Workers Following Contentious Negotiations
President Trump said the government would buy nearly 167 million masks from 3M Co. over the next three months, resolving a spat with the industrial conglomerate over efforts to ramp up supply of gear for front-line workers confronting the coronavirus pandemic. Mr. Trump criticized 3M’s mask-making efforts last week and invoked the Defense Production Act against the company. That Korean War-era law gives the president power to compel manufacturers to make operational changes in the national interest. Health workers across the country are running short on masks as well as the gowns, ventilators and face shields they need to treat the sickest patients with Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus. (Leary and Hufford, 4/6)
President Donald Trump announced the "saga" between his administration and 3M has ended with the finalization of a deal that will see the manufacturer supplying millions of masks for health care workers. Trump announced at the coronavirus task force briefing that the White House had "reached an agreement, very amicable, with 3M for the delivery of an additional 55.5 million high-quality face masks each month." In total, Trump said 3M would produce 166.5 million masks -- nearly all N95s. (Westwood and Diamond, 4/7)
The company said in a statement last week that the administration was trying to stop it from exporting masks to Canada and Latin America, which would have "significant humanitarian implications of ceasing respirator supplies to healthcare workers in Canada and Latin America." (Sullivan, 4/6)
Hundreds of staff at a Detroit-area hospital system have tested positive for coronavirus, the hospital's chief clinical officer said Monday evening. Nonprofit news site BridgeMI.com reported that Dr. Adnan Munkarah of the Henry Ford Hospital Campus confirmed 731 cases of the coronavirus among employees at the hospital, accounting for 2 percent of the hospital system's 31,600 employees. As many as 1,500 at another hospital system in the state have reported symptoms similar to coronavirus, though those numbers are not confirmed cases. (Bowden, 4/6)
The U.S. military is 3D-printing face shields, designing reusable plastic N95 masks and sewing surgical masks to increase the supply of critical medical equipment as hospitals across the U.S. work to combat the coronavirus pandemic. Nine Navy and Marine Corps commands began their 3D-printing efforts on March 28 after the Federal Emergency Management Agency requested the initial production of 220 medical face shields, the Navy said in a news release. (McLaughlin, 4/7)
President Donald Trump made the dramatic announcement on Friday after days of internal debate and anticipation: a recommendation that Americans wear cloth masks when they go out in public, guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But in the days since, neither the president nor members of the coronavirus task force has been seen wearing them, participating in daily press conferences without any facial covering, DIY or otherwise. (Haslett, 4/6)
A system to decontaminate medical-grade N95 face masks began operating Monday in Somerville. Officials said the nonprofit Battelle-owned system hosted by Boston-based Partners Healthcare can clean up to 80,000 masks per day, and each mask can be disinfected up to 10 times before it needs to be thrown out. (Monahan, 4/6)
Following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new recommendation that Americans wear cloth face masks in public, especially in areas with significant COVID-19 spread, many are asking which materials offer the best protection against the virus. Americans can use "cloth face coverings fashioned from household items or made at home from common materials at low cost," the CDC website says. (Schumaker, 4/6)
