HARRISBURG – Gov. Tom Wolf on Thursday announced the creation of a new web portal that will expedite the procurement of critical medical supplies for Pennsylvania’s health care system during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The commonwealth, and the nation, is facing an unprecedented and uncertain time, and as we work to flatten the curve, we must also ramp up efforts to provide Pennsylvania’s health care system with the critical supplies it needs to treat individuals with COVID-19,” said Wolf.
“By consolidating the efforts of various state agencies, we will streamline the procurement process and allow these supplies to get to our health care providers and medical professionals as quickly as possible.”
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Critical Medical Supplies Procurement Portal was developed through a joint effort between the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Health, the Department of General Services and the Department of Community and Economic Development to source the most needed supplies for medical providers, emergency responders, and health care professionals.
The portal is for manufacturers, distributors and other suppliers to inform state officials of supplies available for purchase and will allow state officials to more quickly and efficiently procure these supplies for hospitals and medical facilities across Pennsylvania.
It was noted that links for the Expansion of Supply Chain Capacity and Manufacturing Innovation and Donations will also be available very soon for those organizations who wish to inform the commonwealth of their expanded supply chain and manufacturing capacity or to donate goods and services for distribution across Pennsylvania.
State officials say that the most-needed personal professional equipment includes: surgical/procedure masks, N95/N99 Form Fitting Respirators, face masks with integrated shields, Powered Air Purifying Respirators (PAPR), and alcohol-based hand rubs.
Needed hospital supplies include: ventilators with PEEP functionality, ventilator circuits, endotracheal tubes, and hospital gowns. Needed lab supplies include: UVT 3 mL with flocked flex minitip and Nasopharyngeal (NP) flocked swabs and viral transport media tubes (1-3 mL).
Needed diagnostic supplies include: Roche MagNA Pure 96 DNA and Viral NA small volume kits, Roche MagNA Pure 96 system fluid and tips, Roche MagNA Pure 96 external lysis buffer, and Biomerieux NuciSENS EasyMAG extraction system and supplies.
Questions on the portal can be directed to the Department of General Services at RA-procinternet@pa.gov.
For the most up-to-date information on COVID-19, Pennsylvanians should follow www.governor.pa.gov and www.doh.pa.gov.
