As the COVID-19 pandemic roars on, the government stockpile of once-in-demand ventilators has reportedly turned into a collection of unused devices. The Washington Post reports that, following the panic caused by an anticipated ventilator shortage and subsequent rush to add to the stockpile after President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act, the approach to treating COVID-19 […]
Defense Production Act
Report: New U.S. reshoring agency may loan billions for manufacturing
The head of the newly formed U.S. International Development Finance Corp. (DFC) said this week that the agency could provide tens of billions of dollars in financing to return manufacturing to the United States, according to a report by Reuters. One of the projects it may finance is a $12 billion semiconductor plant from Taiwan, […]
Report: Trump fundraiser tried to cash in on N95 masks
The co-founder of a political action committee that has raised funds for President Donald Trump may have attempted to profit from N95 respirators made by 3M (NYSE:MMM), according to a report by CBS News. The report said that, shortly after Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to obtain 3M’s respirators, Great America PAC (which raised more […]
DOD launches $100m initiative to return COVID-19-related medtech, pharma manufacturing to the U.S.
The U.S. Department of Defense announced today that it will dedicate $100 million authorized by the CARES Act to boost medtech and pharmaceutical manufacturing in the U.S. Working with DOD, the newly formed U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) launched a request for proposals from companies seeking financing under the Defense Production Act, which prioritizes […]
Report: U.S. may shield medical device makers from antitrust rules amid pandemic
U.S. officials are reportedly set to invoke a law that would protect companies from antitrust regulations to keep medical supplies available during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Associated Press reported that the government began formal discussions with private industry representatives yesterday, the subject of those discussions centering around a five-year agreement that would ensure supplies of […]
FDA yanks 60 Chinese companies’ respirators from emergency use list
The FDA has removed respirators made by 60 companies in China from its emergency use authorization (EUA) list for COVID-19 over concerns that they may be “sub-standard.” The list, which had totaled 74 manufacturers when issued April 24, still includes 15 models of N95 respirators made in China by 3M (NYSE:MMM), plus a number of models […]
3M wins federal contracts to further expand U.S. respirator production
3M (NYSE:MMM) announced today that it received two more U.S. Department of Defense contracts to further expand its domestic production of N95 respirator masks. Since January, the Maplewood, Minn.-based company has doubled its global output of respirators to 1.1 billion per year, with 35 million N95 masks produced per month in the U.S. According to a […]
Trump slams 3M over foreign respirator sales, invokes DPA
President Donald Trump last evening blasted 3M (NYSE:MMM) for selling some of its N95 masks to other countries, hours after invoking the Defense Production Act to prioritize orders from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “We hit 3M hard today after we saw what they were doing with their masks,” Trump tweeted Thursday night. “‘P Act’ all […]
