March 11, 2020
In an interview with Bloomberg, Premier CEO Susan DeVore provided insights on behalf of her organization’s members. Premier negotiates on behalf of 4,000 hospitals and 175,000 non-acute facilities.
Over 90% of Premier providers are worried about having enough protective attire and are initiating procedures to suppress or slow the spread of COVID-19.
DeVore points to a very fragmented market as a cause of vulnerabilities in the U.S. Healthcare Supply Chain. “Everybody is very worried about the current supply and the demand that’s 3-4 times normal,” she says.
She says that health systems are trying to figure out how to work together so supplies are not hoarded and can get to where they need to be. She also says the data shows that the need for protective attire is of great concern, showing we have a 2-week supply – an immediate short-term challenge for providers.
DeVore likens the COVID-19 spread to a perfect storm created by our significant demand and dependence on Chinese and Southeast Asian Suppliers.
Her advice to weather the storm is straightforward and practical:
- Optimize the supplies we have
- Follow the CDC guidelines to conserve supplies
- Figure out how we go from using 25 million masks per year to a supply of 500 million
