Pharmacy & Materials Supply Chain Impact

The COVID-19 outbreak has started to affect the supply chain.  Many medical supplies and medications have critical parts, active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and/or finished goods made in China.

Before the reported virus outbreak, Cardinal had a major recall on Level 3 surgical gowns and gown packs, which disrupted the supply chain.  The COVID-19 outbreak has strained the system even more with the global public purchasing gloves, and masks.   Currently, gowns and masks are on allocation and most distributors are not accepting new customers at this time.  PHV is working with our partners at Premier for alternative purchasing channels and communicating information to our members.   If you have a shortage of masks, please contact your local Health Department, as they may be able to provide assistance in obtaining masks.

The Pharmacy supply chain is monitoring a likely disruption of availability of medications.  The FDA is aware of approximately 150 medications that may be going into shortage, but it has not released the list to the medical community or public.

This is a fluid situation and the PHV team is monitoring information daily and working with Premier to stay abreast of the issue.

Stay Updated

For your information, Premier has a webpage dedicated to the COVID-19 situation and impact to the supply chain for materials and pharmaceuticals.  It is updated frequently throughout the day.

Yesterday, Premier hosted a call to update members—you can access the recording HERE .  You will need a Premier username and password to access the information and call.

If you don’t have a Premier username and password, you can sign up for one by following these steps:

1. Point your browser to https://www.premierinc.com/
2. In the upper right hand corner, click PremierConnect Sign In
3. Click the Register button
4. Click “I am not a Supplier”
5. Click Supply Chain Advisor, then click the “Next” button
6. Fill in your contact information
7. Click “Submit”

It generally takes ~1 business day to activate your account.