Supply chain visibility, carcinogen in hand sanitizer: 5 supply chain updates

Cardinal Health's efforts to increase supply chain visibility is a critical step to combat the personal protective equipment shortages many ASCs are still experiencing a year into the pandemic. 

Here are five supply chain updates:

  1. Cardinal Health received $100 million in series D financing to improve visibility in the medical supply chain through tracking technology, according to The Wall Street Journal. After the pandemic exposed supply chain vulnerabilities, Cardinal Health began working with a freight tracking software startup last March to track shipments of personal protective equipment. 
  2. Leading healthcare solutions provider Henry Schein announced a new investment in Atlanta-based Stradis Medical, which will strengthen its focus on the ASC market. Stradis Healthcare provides medical device packaging and custom procedure kits and trays to surgical centers and private practices nationwide. The partnership will allow Henry Schein to provide customized solutions.
  3. Aspen Surgical expanded ASC offerings with their acquisition of Montreal-based medical supply company BlueMed. BlueMed manufactures disposable shoe covers and other protective products used in healthcare, pharmaceutical and lab facilities. 
  4. The U.S. removed 25 million isolation gowns from the national stockpile due to concerns that they may not provide adequate protection to healthcare workers. In September, the federal government purchased more than 80 million isolation gowns from a variety of companies that were untested in their ability to deliver quality gowns, according to Bloomberg. 
  5. Online pharmacy Valisure has detected a carcinogen called benzene in 44 brands of hand sanitizer that entered the market during the pandemic, according to a March 24 release. Benzene is an industrial chemical known to cause leukemia and carry other serious health risks. The chemical is usually banned by the FDA, but the agency loosened its rules during the pandemic. 

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