HSCA
BY TODD EBERT
Healthcare Group Purchasing Organizations Critical partners in the COVID-19 response effort.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues
Demand Surge Notices Led to
Expanding to Non-Traditional
to strain hospitals, healthcare organiza-
Increased Manufacturer Capacity.
Suppliers Helped Ensure Continuous
tions, providers, and patients, the Health-
Communications from one GPO to
Supply of Essential Products.
care Supply Chain Association (HSCA) has
manufacturers about anticipated demand
By expanding partnerships beyond
taken a comprehensive look at pandemic
surge resulted in expanded manufacturer
traditional healthcare vendors into
response efforts from group purchasing
capacity and an additional 17 million
non-traditional and adjacent industries,
organizations (GPOs) across the health-
N95 respirators, 57.5 million isolation
such as distilleries, textile manufacturers,
care sector in a new issue brief. GPOs have
gowns, 2.1 million face shields, and
steel and automobile manufacturers,
a proven track record of providing critical
25.8 3-ply adjustable million cotton
and others, GPOs were able to help fill
support during emergencies like Hurri-
masks, among other products.
supply gaps for essential products such
cane Harvey, the California wildfires, and outbreaks of infectious diseases. COVID-19 has highlighted weak-
as hand sanitizer, face shields, isolation Supply Chain Resiliency Programs
gowns, shoe coverings, surgical caps,
Resulted in New Manufacturers
and nasal swabs.
nesses across the healthcare supply
Coming to Market. Multiple GPOs
chain, and GPOs have been among the
launched programs aimed at increasing
Collaborating with Public Authori-
first to respond, leveraging their unique
supply chain resiliency and redundancy
ties Resulted in New Policy Solutions.
insight to address supply issues and
to prevent shortages of critical products.
HSCA member GPOs worked with the
anticipate surges in demand. The follow-
One GPO’s program resulted in the
White House and government agencies to
ing are just some of the ways that GPOs
availability of an additional 676,000 units
get needed products to healthcare provid-
have helped stakeholders across the in-
of the sedative propofol. Another
ers and provide recommendations regard-
dustry navigate the COVID-19 pandemic
GPO added 40+ new manufacturers
ing regulatory flexibility around telehealth,
over the past two years.
of COVID-19 supplies, signed more
excluding key medical products from
than 100 new contracts, and evaluated
tariffs, improving supply chain visibility,
supplies from more than 2,500 brokers.
supply strategies for PPE and more.
Building Essential Medications Lists Helped Avert Drug Shortages. Multiple
The innovative data-driven solutions
GPOs compiled and identified lists of
Vetting Prevented Fraudulent or
developed by GPOs have helped thou-
essential medications whose absence would
Inferior Products from Getting to
sands of patients get essential care and
threaten the ability of hospitals to provide
Caregivers and Patients. One GPO
informed preparations for future public
immediate and high-quality patient care
vetted thousands of leads and found that
health emergencies. GPOs will continue
and shared the lists with government au-
more than 90% were illegitimate. Anoth-
to collaborate with industry partners
thorities. One GPO identified 200 essential
er GPO vetted 2,400 new manufacturers
and provide them with data, operational
medications, including 77 acute and chronic
to confirm registration with FDA and
support, and logistical guidance to ensure
life-saving drugs that have no alternatives in
the National Institute for Occupational
a resilient healthcare supply chain that
the event of a supply disruption.
Safety and Health (NIOSH).
supports providers and patients.
Todd Ebert, R.ph., is the president and CEO of Healthcare Supply Chain Association (HSCA).
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June 2022 | The Journal of Healthcare Contracting
